The Truth behind the Mask
by elle6778
Summary: They thought that the marriage happened for all the wrong reasons. If only they tried to read the truth behind each other's actions, then perhaps they would see that they could have been happy together.
1. Prologue

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Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

Warning: This is an AU story in a canon setting. Or rather, the canon facts have been twisted beyond recognition. ** Only suitable for fans of ItaSaku AND DeiSaku. If you object to either of these couples, then you won't like this story. **

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Title: The Truth behind the Mask

Author: elle6778

Rating: T

Genre: Adventure/Romance

50-shinobi Theme No #32: Hunternin

A/N: Happy New Year everyone! Welcome to this new multi-chaptered fanfiction. Note the warning above before you read. Other than that, please enjoy!

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Prologue **

**(Beta-ed by littleredcoat)**

...

It was raining again.

From her perch above the east tower of the perimeter wall surrounding Konoha, Sakura squinted through her moisture-clumped lashes. Although it was only late afternoon, there was hardly any natural light illuminating her surroundings. The grey clouds lining the sky made sure of that. Konoha was barely visible in the almost-solid sheets of relentless rainwater.

With a hopeful sigh, she shifted her gaze to the opposite direction towards the forest surrounding her beloved village. She could barely make out the shapes of the trees ahead through the rain. She thought with a worried frown that surely the rain would cease at some point, otherwise the threat of a flood was becoming increasingly real.

"They will be back soon."

She just managed not to jump in surprise at the suddenness of those words. Smiling, she turned to the kunoichi who, unlike her, was on duty today. She should be out there carrying out missions like any other _real_ kunoichi. But from what she had gathered so far, it was simply not allowed.

'_Should just tell them to stuff it!' _

She blew away a strand of pink hair from her eye, trying to ignore her inner self's grumblings, which were getting increasingly persistent of late. Funny, the inner voice had been mostly silent for so many years that she had thought that she had outgrown it or something. Clearly not, she thought dryly.

"Sakura-san?"

Recalling the younger girl's implied question, she replied, "I hope so, Moegi."

The chuunin smiled reassuringly. "Uchiha-san will be back in time for the wedding. The day after tomorrow, right? We are all looking forward to the celebration."

The wedding.

As if she needed a reminder. Everyone was talking about it. This marriage of an Uchiha to someone outside the Uchiha clan, the first one in many years, must be one of the most publicized events she had ever known. Sasuke had mentioned once that in the quest to keep their bloodlines pure, the clan members inter-marry. To do otherwise, especially when it was one of the clan leader's son, was unheard of.

Sometimes, she wondered if it was alright for them to break such an old tradition. She knew that not everyone in the clan approved of the match. In fact, some were openly hostile towards the idea, especially those families with daughters they had hoped would marry into the leading Uchiha family. Sakura supposed she should not blame them.

Irritation coursed through her then. As far as everyone was concerned, this was an arranged marriage, a political one to secure the Uchihas' position in Konoha. That should be enough for them, shouldn't it? So what was their problem? She and Naruto had spoken about the topic at length, and he told her that eventually, they would accept it, as unconventional as it was.

Now, if only she could convince herself of the same.

Unaware of her troubled thoughts, Moegi continued, "Konohamaru and Udon can't stop talking about it. It's good of Hokage-sama to give us all a day off, isn't it?"

"Not everyone is off, though," Sakura corrected absently. "There are still guards around."

The chuunin grinned sheepishly. "Oh yes. The ANBU are still on duty, right?" Her brows furrowed. "So what about Uchiha-san's friends? They are ANBU, right? Will they be attending the wedding?"

At the mention of the elites, a surge of envy shot through her and her hands clenched into fists. She forcibly relaxed them, telling herself that she had made her decision half a year ago when she accepted the proposal. She would stand by her decision now, even if it meant that her dream of joining her old team in ANBU was dashed to pieces. She had other dreams to look forward to, like a family instead of a career. Many women were happy with that.

"Sakura-san?"

Turning her attention back to the chuunin, she replied, "Some of them are. And I'm sure the rest will be around to watch the wedding even though we can't see them."

Moegi exclaimed animatedly, "Ha, that's right! They are so cool. One day I want to be just like them! After I catch up with Konohamaru, that is."

Sakura only smiled at her exuberance. "ANBU training is rigorous and the qualifying examination is not something you'll ever forget. But I'm sure if you work hard, you will get there." After all, she had managed it, had she not?

"Look! I see someone coming!" Moegi exclaimed.

Tensing, her eyes immediately darted to the surrounding forest, her senses expanding in preparation for the unexpected. Unlike the excited Moegi, she was more wary of the possibility of approaching danger. Really, Moegi should be a bit more cautious or she would get into trouble one day. It was not that long ago that Pein had all but walked into Konoha.

She relaxed when she recognized the chakra signature of a familiar team of shinobi. And a moment later, their voices reached her.

"… slow and useless."

"What did you say? I'm not slow and useless."

"Right. You're just Dickless."

"Shut up, Sai!"

Sakura rolled her eyes at the familiar banter as she tugged the hood of her cloak closer around her. Then, a grin lighting up her face, she took a leaping jump off the 30-feet high wall. Her feet barely touched the ground before she sped forward towards her friends, who immediately ceased their bickering when they saw her. Under their respective white cloaks, which were unbelievably left open despite the rain, Naruto was dressed in his usual loud orange outfit and Sai was wearing his usual half-top. Kakashi was strolling along behind them, his orange book nowhere in sight, no doubt carefully protected from the rain. It looked as if they had been on a regular mission, not an ANBU one since they were not in the elite's gear.

"Sakura-ch-Ooomph!" Naruto burst out when she flung herself on him in a bear hug.

Pulling back to study the blond's water-streaked features, she said, "You're back, Naruto!"

Smiling so widely that his blue eyes were mere slits in his face, Naruto exclaimed, "What are you talking about! I wouldn't miss your wedding." After a brief pause, he added mischievously, "Of course, it would be better if you were marrying ME!"

Laughing now, she shoved him away and turned to Sai. "Sai."

"Hag."

Sakura growled in annoyance. "Clearly all those rehabilitation sessions haven't helped your social skills that much. Maybe you need a refresher course."

Sai merely smiled his fake smile.

Two years ago, the Konohagakure ANBU Root subdivision which had been founded by Danzou was disbanded. She knew Tsunade had been trying to break up that division for a long time, and it was only finally successfully disbanded when Danzou had died during the battle with Madara, and the two old council members Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were replaced by younger advisors.

Since then, as one of Tsunade's most trusted shinobi, she had been given the responsibility to study and rehabilitate the ex-Root nins. Her first project was Sai.

Sakura smiled as she recalled the destruction and chaos which followed before she and Sai had come to some form of understanding, which in turn had deepened her understanding of Root. At first, she had been horrified by everything she had learnt, from the fact that they were made to kill their comrades to the cursed seal on their tongue. But now, she could understand how certain characteristic of the Root nins might be useful in the field. It was important to blank out one's emotion during certain types of missions, or one might not recover from the horrors of them. However, Root's method of training was completely unacceptable.

"Yo, Sakura."

She turned her attention to the silver-haired squad leader. "Kakashi-sensei."

The corner of his visible eye crinkled. "All set?"

"Just about." At least, that was what she tried to tell herself. But what bride was _not_ nervous about the wedding? "You coming tomorrow, right, Sensei?"

The silver-haired nin nodded.

Linking her arm through Naruto's, leaving Kakashi and Sai to walk behind them, she walked towards the east gate. "Good mission?" she asked.

Nodding in greeting to the guards at the gate, Naruto replied, "We had a bit of a problem. Some rogue-nins were on our tail half the time, but we got the package safely to Tea in the end."

"Good."

Naruto rubbed his stomach then. "Now I could do with some ramen."

"Dickless, we must report to the Hokage."

Naruto glared over his shoulder at his mission partner. "Sai, call me that again and I will shove your di-"

"Naruto!" she interrupted, before the whole thing turned into an explosive brawl. Narrowing her eyes at Sai, she warned, "You know the terms of the agreement, Sai. Calling people names is _not_ the way to integrate yourself into society."

Unperturbed, Sai smiled. Again. "I understand that pet names are taken as a sign of affection."

"Not insulting ones," Sakura ground out irritably, itching to smack Sai upside the head. Sometimes, it seemed like he said such things deliberately just to provoke a reaction.

"Hokage-sama will be cross if we make her wait," Kakashi pointed out, absently rubbing his wet mask. "And I'd like to get into something dry."

Naruto cricked his neck from side to side. "Ah, well. Maybe we should just get the reporting over now." Nodding in the direction of the Hokage Tower, he continued, "Let's go, Kakashi-sensei, Sai."

"See you guys around," she called out as her friends moved away from her.

She watched their backs until they disappeared from sight. Then, alone once more, she made her way back to eastern perimeter walls to wait for another person. Tsunade said that he was expected back today, after all.

Her husband-to-be had better return in time for the wedding.

Her inner self snorted.

000

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><p>000<p>

It was raining again in Konoha.

The drumming of raindrops against the canopy of leaves overhead was loud in the relative silence of the night, drowning out all other sounds. Looking forward to being home where he could finally rest after the grueling month-long mission, Itachi sped up. He was one day late, but it could not be helped. There had been some complications at the Earth-Grass border that he had not expected. Fortunately, he had been able to slip away from an even worse delay.

The regulation black ANBU cloak he wore kept his body relatively dry, but his sandals were soaked through, making them rather uncomfortable to move in. With each step he took there was a squeaking sound that was audible only to him, he was sure, but it was enough to irk him.

A muted sigh left him. Perhaps that was not the reason for his irritation. He should be honest with himself at least, if nothing else. The truth was, he was simply dreading the upcoming event tomorrow.

The wedding day.

The wedding day had been looming closer and closer, and he wondered if there was something he could do to stall or even stop the event. He had not expected things to progress this far, but he had been preoccupied with missions, as well as other matters. But it was too late now to do anything about it. It would have to go ahead, or there would be even more trouble. The entire situation was vexing.

He sped up when he caught sight of the eastern perimeter wall, eager to end his long journey, even though he did not look forward to the impending conversation with his parents, his father in particular. Perhaps he should simply not visit them tonight. They would be too busy with the wedding preparations to lecture him properly at any rate. His mother usually was easier to talk to, but when his father was present, she tended to keep her opinions to herself, regardless of whether she personally agreed with his views or not.

His mother was good Uchiha wife. From what he had gathered, Uchiha Mikoto was an above-average chuunin when her parents had agreed to a match between her and Fugaku. Once they were wedded, her priority had shifted to her new family, leaving behind something which could have been a good shinobi career. She never seemed to regret it, from what everyone could tell on the surface, but then again, she was always exceptionally good at presenting a pleasant façade, despite all the restrictions and traditions weighing down upon her. Sometimes, Itachi wondered if she was truly happy.

It appalled him to think that any woman marrying an Uchiha would be subjected to such restrictions.

Reaching the edge of the forest, he dropped down from the tree limb to land on the soft wet ground. His sandals squelched irritatingly as he stepped towards the gates, glancing up briefly at the kunoichi standing on the top of the wall. The markings on the perimeter wall drew his eyes. They were part of the enhanced security laid in place during the rebuilding of Konoha after Pein's invasion three years ago.

As he approached, the kunoichi nodded respectfully at him and he returned the nod. She was the Sandaime's grandson's teammate, if he recalled correctly. Masked as he was, like all ANBU on covert duty, no one could identify him. So when he reached the gates, he slid down his black cloak to reveal the ANBU tattoo on his arm, allowing the guard on duty to inspect it with the appropriate security jutsu. Once cleared, the door opened to allow him through.

It took him less than two minutes to reach the Hokage Tower. As he knocked on the door he nodded a brief greeting to the two ANBU guards that were flanking the entrance.

They inclined their heads in acknowledgement just before the Hokage said, "Come in."

Without further ado, Itachi entered. "Hokage-sama," he greeted, closing the door quietly behind him.

"Ah, you're back, Uchiha." Tsunade eyed him intently. "So, how is the situation in Iwagakure?"

"Unsettled, with the possibility of an attempt to overthrow the Tsuchikage."

"Onoki?"

Itachi inclined his head.

Tsunade huffed. "That old man should retire soon anyway. Why is he hanging on to power? Besides, with the back pain he's always complaining about, he can't possibly be the strongest shinobi in Iwa."

Itachi refrained from pointing out to the volatile Hokage that she was not the strongest shinobi in Konoha either. That honor fell to a certain blond jinchuuriki. By that logic, the nineteen-year-old should be leading Konoha. Now, _that_ would prove to be interesting, he mused.

He kept his thoughts to himself, and instead said, "There are unconfirmed rumors about the Tsuchikage's reticence to retire."

"Such as?"

"Some say that he has a secret successor."

"Unlikely," the Godaime muttered. "He's too arrogant. Would never be able to keep a secret like that."

"Another rumor is that he could never find someone to replace an old student of his. That everyone else falls short."

"What happened to this student?"

"He stole a forbidden technique, fled Iwagakure and became a missing nin."

"Ah, the usual story." After a brief pause, Tsunade asked, "Did you manage to find out if the Tsuchikage is likely to agree to assist us?"

"Iwa's medical skills are subpar. If Konoha were to offer a good incentive, he would be more receptive to suggestions."

"That's good. We can try that. And he _was_ reasonable to work with during the Shinobi Alliance. Absolutely shocking," she said drily.

Itachi agreed. Even though he had not been present in Konoha during this period of unrest, he had heard from Shisui that the Shinobi Alliance was surprisingly effective. It seemed that the leaders of the five major shinobi nations and Mifune, the general of the Land of Iron, had been able to set aside their differences to work together to battle Madara and his plan to take over the world.

The Hokage slammed a decisive hand on her desk, causing the stacks of paper around her to tremble precariously. "In that case, I should arrange to meet him. Trade medical jutsu for his assistance with the stone tablet."

Thinking of the wedding and what was to follow, Itachi volunteered, "I can deliver the message."

"The wedding is tomorrow." Brows furrowing, Tsunade gave him an odd look. A suspicious look. "Or are you offering because of that?"

Itachi shook his head once, calmly. He only hoped that the Hokage did not perceive his feelings of guilt. "I would not miss the wedding. I mean to go after the event. It would be more efficient, since I'm familiar with the country."

Tsunade eyed him shrewdly.

He felt compelled to add, "This is my mission, Hokage-sama."

She narrowed her eyes. "And who's running this village? Yes, you brought it to my attention in the first place. But I still get to decide what my shinobi do."

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

A little more than a year ago, he had overheard his father discussing the stone tablet with his little brother. What he had heard worried him, but Fugaku clearly did not want him to know, as both he and Sasuke had fallen silent when he approached. All he had managed to discern was that this matter had originated from Madara. Apparently, one of Madara's last words to Fugaku was that the Uchiha would lose out like the rest of his enemies once the stone tablet was found. After that, it had taken Itachi a month or so of spying on his family to find out what the stone tablet did, and by then, he was certain that Fugaku had no intention of sharing the information with the Hokage.

So Itachi did what he had to do, and had given Tsunade the information in confidence.

Tsunade was rightly apprehensive about the implication of this stone tablet on the shinobi world, and had promptly dispatched him to search for it. His mission to locate the stone tablet had brought him to Earth Country almost a year ago, and since then, he had spent a lot of time there. He was definitely more familiar with Earth Country when compared to the rest of Konoha shinobi.

"Well, there's no need for you to leave so soon. A team of genin is quite capable of taking a message to request a meeting."

"Of course, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage looked as if she was about to dismiss him, but there was something else he needed to discuss with her. "I've been approached again."

She raised a brow, her earlier suspicion replaced by surprise. "Again? It has been what? Four years since the last attempt?"

"Five, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade leaned back, frowning thoughtfully. "I was under the impression that Akatsuki was disbanded after we destroyed Madara. We have heard nothing from them for years."

"I'm not certain if this nin represents Akatsuki or a new organization. He asked me to consider joining his organization."

Tsunade scowled. "You think the remaining members of the Akatsuki formed a new organization?"

"It's unlikely to be Akatsuki. None were left alive after the war."

"Stranger things have happened." She peered at him consideringly. Even before she opened her mouth, he knew what she was going to say, because this conversation was very similar to the one they had five years ago. "You know what I'm going to ask," she began. "I would like you to think over it again."

"With all due respect, Hokage-sama, this is not the right time to move in that direction," Itachi responded evenly. "The situation in the Uchiha clan is too uncertain."

"I see." After a brief pause, she demanded sternly, "Now tell me. Honestly. Is there a problem with the wedding?"

For a moment, he wondered if it was worth discussing his concerns with the Hokage. No, it was probably unwise to provoke her wrath since it was unlikely that anything said would change the outcome.

"No," he finally said.

There was a glint of warning in the Hokage's eyes. "Because, favoritism or not, Sakura is important to me."

Itachi inclined his head. "I'm aware of that."

Tsunade huffed while frowning at him.

"If there's nothing else, Hokage-sama?"

She leaned back against her chair and tapped her fingers on her desk. "Very well. You're dismissed."

With a nod, Itachi left the way he came. Not long afterwards, he was on the rooftops, leaping from one to another, heading in the direction of his house just outside the Uchiha compound.

He had always been of the opinion that the segregation of the Uchiha from the rest of Konoha was unhealthy. Still, although the Godaime Hokage had no objections to him and a handful of other young Uchiha nins moving out of the compound into the main residential area of Konoha, the Uchiha elders had plenty to say. It took him a while to persuade the elders that such a move was to the benefit of the Uchiha clan, that the Uchiha had to be seen as a part of Konoha, and not a separate entity.

Fugaku had disapproved of the entire idea, while Mikoto said nothing, even though there was no mistaking the resigned expression which had flashed across her features when he had told them of his intention to move out. Sasuke had immediately decided to join him. With both him and Sasuke united in their desire, there was nothing much Fugaku could have said. At least, not without alienating both his sons. Besides, by then, the sixteen-year-old Sasuke had already been a jounin for a year and it would have been demeaning to tie him to the family home if he wished to move out.

They finally compromised. Itachi and Sasuke could move out, but would stay near the Uchiha compound and return often for clan meetings and visits.

A familiar flash of pink caught his sight, breaking into his thoughts. He slowed curiously and peered out from behind a tall brick parapet to watch her.

It was not so much the owner of the pink hair that drew his interest, but the location she was in. Standing outside a bar most notorious for drunken shinobi behaving wild and unrestrained was not where he had expected to see her. After all, the kunoichi would be married by tomorrow.

But it brought back memories.

He recalled a night very similar to this one, minus the rain, when he had been travelling back from one of his many missions. It was the day of Sasuke's seventeenth birthday two years ago when he had caught sight of his brother, his old teammates, and their other friends celebrating in this very same bar. He had paused at this very spot then as well, curious to see what they were up to.

All of them had not been exactly sober, but he could tell that they were not completely insensible either. The celebration had carried on with toast after toast for Sasuke, and he had been quite certain that his little brother would soon succumb to unconsciousness at the rate he was going.

However, a moment later, he had changed his mind about that. From where he stood, he had been able to see the pink-haired kunoichi standing behind Sasuke quite clearly. She had worn a dress of deep green which dipped disturbingly low at the back, revealing the seductive curve of her spine. One of her hands had been laid against Sasuke's back, and he had been able to tell from the subtle green glow that Sakura was helping Sasuke burn off the alcohol he was steadily consuming. Her other hand had been trapped between Sasuke's hand and his hip.

He recalled how he had to forcibly drag his eyes away from the seductive curve of her spine, chastising himself harshly for eyeing someone who had feelings for Sasuke. Feelings that Sasuke reciprocated based on the way his little brother had reddened each time he had been teased about it. And later that night, in the house he shared with Sasuke, he had heard the disquieting but unmistakable sounds of the physical confirmation of those feelings between Sasuke and Sakura.

Now he was hidden at the same spot, once again watching the kunoichi forbidden to him. She was outside the bar but this time, there was no smile on her lips. Instead, frustration colored her expression as she stood facing the Yamanaka girl, both of them standing apart from the rest of their friends.

His brows furrowed when he saw the way the Yamanaka girl was sneering at Sakura. From what he could recall they were supposed to be good friends, but since her engagement, he had never seen them together. Perhaps there was trouble in their friendship? After all, Sasuke had once told him that the two kunoichi always had an odd rivalry going on between them. Perhaps they were currently embroiled in another one of their battles.

He should not concern himself with this, he decided, turning away to continue on his journey.

000

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><p>000<p>

Ino was drunk. One could tell by the way she was swaying on her bright blue stiletto heels which matched the miniscule blue dress that barely covered enough to be decent.

It seemed to her that Ino was drunk more often than not lately, something which worried Sakura somewhat. It could not be healthy. Still, today was not the day to bring the topic up. Cheeks flushed and eyes glassy, the blonde girl was already working up to a fine temper. Sakura had to tell herself to remain calm, that to shout at Ino would be akin to pouring fuel on fire at this point.

So she said evenly, "I'm only asking if you can confirm that you'll be one of my attendants during the wedding ceremony, Ino. That's all."

The blonde swallowed the rest of her drink, some kind of strong spirit, in one gulp before answering, "I don't know, okay? I might not be around." She shook a dismissive hand about. "Missions and all."

'_The self-absorbed bitch needs a slap!' _

"The wedding's tomorrow. Surely if there's an upcoming mission, you should know by now," Sakura pointed out tersely, ignoring her inner voice's angry words.

Ino's blue eyes flashed. "Not everyone can afford to turn down missions, you know. If there's one at the last minute, I'll have to take it."

'_That's just a lame excuse!'_

Sakura bit back the urge to say exactly that. "I want you to be my attendant, Ino. We made a promise to each other, remember? But you need to give me an answer. Mikoto-san is asking if she should find a replacement for you."

Snorting, Ino sneered, "Wow, now you're even replacing your supposed best-friend. What? Old Ino-Pig isn't suitable as best-friend material now that you're marrying into the Uchiha clan?"

'_She DID NOT just say that, the jealous pig!'_

"That's not what I meant!" Sakura ground out, her tether on her temper slipping.

What the hell was wrong with Ino these days? Even before she had gotten engaged, Ino had been weird like this. Yes, they used to bicker, but this was not bickering anymore. This was practically open hostility. They barely even talked these days. Ino had not even bothered to turn up when she had a little dinner to celebrate her nineteenth birthday a month ago.

Ignoring her, Ino went on, slurring as she did so, "Everyone thinks you're so good and all. In the end, you're still a kunoichi like us. So why do you get to be the Hokage's one prized apprentice? Even Shizune is not given the sort of preferential treatment you get. Everyone knows the Godaime sees you as a daughter. Talk about favoritism."

Sakura sucked in a sharp breath, hurt by Ino's words. "What? I-"

But Ino was not done. "Not only the surrogate daughter, but also good enough to be traded to that stuck-up Uchiha clan. Figures."

_Traded?_

Her own temper rising, Sakura snapped, "What are you talking about, Ino?"

Ino gave her a mock-pitying look. "Do you think he wants you for yourself? It's your connection to the Hokage that his father wants. Marry Sakura and get the Hokage's ears. Don't delude yourself, forehead. Why do you think he agreed to marry you? You're not particularly attractive or skilled. Not even good enough to be sent to seduction missions."

_Seduction missions? _

Even though all of Ino's words felt like individual stab wounds, everything else Ino had said except for 'seduction mission' flew from Sakura's mind, as the possible reason for the blonde's animosity over the past year emerged. Keeping her voice low as not to allow others to hear them, Sakura asked, "You've been sent on seduction missions?"

Ino's lips curled. "Of course. Like any competent kunoichi, I've been on those," she said flippantly.

Sakura's heart squeezed. "Oh, Ino…" she murmured.

"What? Is that sympathy I see in your face? There's no need for that." Blue eyes glared at her. "I'll have you know that the pay is fantastic. I earned more in the past year than all my previous paychecks combined. You should try it." A patently false expression of surprise crossed Ino's face. "Oh, yeah, I forgot. You're nowhere near acceptable for those kinds of missions. Pity. Just as well you'll have the Uchiha to support you in the future."

Why, oh why, did Ino accept such missions in the first place? She could always say no. And Sakura knew this because Tsunade had told her so when she had been given the option about a year ago when she turned eighteen.

"You could have said no."

Ino raised a brow. "And miss out on the pay?"

"It's not like you're destitute, Ino!" Sakura snapped, patience waning.

Blue eyes narrowed. "You're looking down on me now, are you?"

Sakura threw her arms up in frustration. "Oh, for kami's sake! That's not what I meant!"

But Ino was already wobbling away from her, muttering under her breath about so-called friends. Sakura was about to start after her when she saw Shikamaru detaching himself from Chouji, a frown marring his brows as he made a beeline for his old female teammate. Ino's relationship with Shikamaru was strained as well, and now Sakura understood why. Shikamaru could not be happy about Ino's decision to accept those seduction missions.

Knowing that Ino would be alright, Sakura decided that she should find Naruto and tell the blond she was leaving. She was hardly in the mood to talk to anyone else after this. And besides, this was just one of those informal gatherings of friends, so no one expected anyone to stay until the very end. No one would really care if she disappeared home.

Before she could find her friend, however, her path was blocked by a familiar-looking girl. Her dark hair was twisted up in a sophisticated style which made her own pink ponytail look positively childish. Further down, an elegant grey and black dress adorned the girl's slender figure. Sakura resisted the impulse to look down at her own dark red dress which had seen better days, knowing that such reaction would no doubt please Uchiha Mai.

She remembered the first time she had met the girl. The encounter had taken place at Sasuke's housewarming party, when he first moved out of the family home with Itachi three years ago. The girl had draped herself over Sasuke every chance she got, ignoring Sasuke's every attempt to detach her. When all else failed, Sasuke had finally dragged _her _between them to act as a human barrier. That same day also marked the commencement of Mai's hostility towards her.

"Ah, Haruno-san. What a coincidence."

Sakura smiled tightly, telling herself to be civil. After all, she would be part of Mai's clan soon. "Uchiha-san. Out with friends tonight?"

A well-shaped brow arched. "Dinner. Just passing by on my way home." She flicked a disdainful glance at the bar. "This is not my sort of place."

Something in her head began to throb in warning, and her inner self growled menacingly. Biting her tongue, Sakura decided that it was best not to answer. The girl would go away eventually and leave her in peace.

"I'm surprised to find you here, though." Another pointed glance at the bar. "Look, I'm going to help you out with a bit of advice here, alright?"

'_Oh, stuff the advice and shut her mouth with our fists!' _

Her inner voice had a point. Sakura had a feeling that she would not like the advice.

"You're about to marry into the Uchiha clan, so you should watch who you mix with and where you go. If not, you'll reflect badly on your new husband." Dark eyes narrowed. "We wouldn't want that now, would we?"

It was hard, but Sakura managed to grind out, "Thank you for your advice, Uchiha-san. I will be more circumspect in the future."

"Call me Mai. After all, we'll soon be family. I'm sure you don't mind me calling you Sakura, right?"

"Right," Sakura bit out.

A haughty smile curved Mai's lips. "Well then, I'd better get home. It's far too late to be loitering around the streets of Konoha."

It was another stab at her, Sakura knew it. But she bit her tongue and simply waved the other girl goodbye. After all, this was not the first Uchiha female to approach her with such words lately. And it would not be the last, that was for sure. She would get used to it after a while, she supposed.

Another glance at the crowded bar made her decide that Naruto probably would not miss her. Shrugging, she left the bar. As she made her way down the darkened streets, she debated if she should just go home or go do some work. Ever since she had been taken off the active duty roster, she had been spending more and more time in the hospital and assisting Tsunade with administrative work.

Sakura glanced at her watch, conscious that she should not be spending the whole night before her wedding working. But it was only eight and she really did not relish the idea of being home alone with only her thoughts for company.

Yes. She would go to the hospital and do a few hours of work.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Itachi stood at the door to Sasuke's bedroom. It was open, revealing everything within as it usually did for the past three years. From the day both of them moved in together Sasuke had never bothered to shut the door if he were not inside.

Itachi scanned the contents of the room. There was a neatly-made double bed on the far wall just two steps away from the window, a wardrobe on the opposite side, a desk and a bookshelf half filled with books. The other half was filled with an assortment of Sasuke's personal belongings, which included a shelf of pictures.

He stepped closer to the shelf to study the pictures. They were placed in chronological order. The first one was a photograph of their family, all four of them. The next one was of himself and Sasuke. It had been taken on the day Sasuke entered the Academy. Following that was a picture of Team 7. Kakashi and Sakura were smiling, while Naruto and Sasuke scowled at each other over the pink-haired kunoichi's head. Itachi never failed to be amused at the sight of this picture.

His brother was a few years older in the next picture. It was of him and Naruto, both bloodied and weary after passing their jounin exams at fifteen. The exams had taken place in Suna that year, he recalled.

Then there was another picture of their family of four, taken a year later outside the new family house they had built after Konoha's destruction. Itachi frowned deeply at the disturbing memories of how close their village had come to being completely wiped out. If not for Naruto's persuasive skills, he was certain that no one would survive. Once he sobered up a little, Naruto would make a good Hokage, a much better one than he could ever be, Itachi thought. Besides, the kyuubi jinchuuriki was the strongest shinobi in Konoha. If only Fugaku would agree, Itachi's life would be less stressful.

The next photograph was taken a few months later, when he and Sasuke had moved into this house within the Uchiha compound. One of his cousins had taken a picture of them on the couch in the living room. There was Shisui balanced on the armrest, then himself, Sakura, Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi.

And finally, the latest additions were taken on Sasuke's seventeenth birthday, clearly before anyone had become inebriated with legal intoxicants. There was one of the entire group of friends and another one with only a grinning Sakura and a slightly-smiling Sasuke slanting a glance down at her.

If he had any doubts about their feelings for each other, this picture would erase them all. It was only a matter of time before they ended up together, provided nothing stood in their way.

A heavy sigh left Itachi as he turned away from the shelf to leave the room, rubbing his forehead as he did so. As weary as he was from his mission and the report he had presented to Tsunade earlier, he found himself frustratingly restless. He needed to wind down before he could even think of sleeping.

He had been sitting down with a book for ten minutes when he sensed a familiar presence approaching and had to bite back the urge to groan.

"Hey, Itachi."

Without looking up from the book in front of him, Itachi murmured, "Shisui, has it occurred to you to use the door instead of the window?"

The thump of sandal against floor sounded, signaling his cousin's entry to his living room. "Just dropped by to tell you some juicy news, 'Tachi-chan."

Itachi sighed inwardly, knowing that he would have no peace until he saw to his cousin's demands. He glanced up to find Shisui leaning against the wall next to the living room window. His cousin was dressed casually in the typical Uchiha collared shirt, complete with the Uchiha emblem at the bottom left corner and dark pants. The dark markings around his eyes were tipped up even further at the corners as he grinned widely.

Itachi raised a brow. "You have my attention."

Shisui made a face. "So proper, as always."

"What do you want, Shisui? It's rather late."

Shisui walked over and leaned against the desk, peering at the book he was reading. Itachi promptly flipped the book shut, eliciting another grin from his cousin. He did not wish for Shisui to pick on his choice of book. It did not matter what topic it was on, Shisui would certainly find a way to tease him about it.

"Alright, alright. I'll tell you."

Itachi waited.

"Mai is playing her usual games."

"Games?" Itachi prompted, as a spike of wariness stabbed him. "What games?"

"I saw her outside the Crystal bar, you know, the one with all the unruly youngsters?" Shisui waited for him to nod before continuing, "She was talking to Sakura."

Itachi bit back a groan. That could not be good. Uchiha Mai had always been, and would always be, a troublemaker. She also made no secret of her interest in joining the head family of the Uchiha clan. It had not even mattered to her whether it was himself or Sasuke, which was a clear indication that her heart was not involved in her decision. Both he and Sasuke had dealt with considerable grief over her actions over the years since they could not really avoid her. After all, she was one of their cousins. Her father was their father's first cousin.

"What did she say?" Itachi finally asked.

Shisui shrugged. "Too far to hear anything. But nothing good seeing that Sakura was definitely pissed."

Itachi lowered his gaze to the book in front of him, tracing the spine of the book with a finger thoughtfully. What were the chances of Mai disrupting the wedding tomorrow? Would it be sufficient to delay or even cancel it?

Shisui shook his head. "You should have just married Mai to save us from all the chaos that girl will no doubt create."

"Why don't you marry her?"

Placing a palm on his chest, Shisui widened his eyes and said, "But I'm not as good a catch as the son of Uchiha Fugaku. I'm merely their lowly cousin."

Itachi felt his lips twitch at Shisui's theatrics. "Do you think she will cause trouble?"

"On the wedding day, you mean? Tomorrow?" Shisui wrinkled his nose. "Probably not. For all her attention-seeking antics, she wouldn't shame her parents that way."

How disappointing.

"Anyway, I should let you rest." Shisui arched a brow meaningfully at the book on the desk. "Long day tomorrow."

"I know."

"My mother expects me to make myself useful." Shisui grimaced. "So I'd better catch some sleep."

He nodded.

And with that, Shisui left the way he came, leaving him to his own troubled thoughts. The book in front of him caught his eye, but somehow, he was no longer in the state on mind to read it.

All he could think about was tomorrow.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Today was the day.

It was her wedding day, but somehow, it did not seem any different from any other day this week. The sky was overcast, as usual, threatening to rain at any moment. The weather was truly depressing lately. But since the ceremonies would be conducted indoors, it did not really matter. The Uchiha Shrine was large enough to accommodate all the guests, after all.

A pat on her shoulder made her turn away from the window to lock her gaze on a smiling Tsunade. Her Shishou had been here with her for the past half an hour or so, seeming to know that she needed the support.

"Nervous, Sakura?" she asked.

"A little."

Tsunade chuckled. "No need to be. And besides, if your husband misbehaves, you can always land a punch he'll never forget."

Sakura smiled slightly. "I doubt I can land a hit on him, Tsunade-Shishou."

"Don't sell yourself short, Sakura." Tsunade have her a fond smile. "I trained you, after all. No thanks to that lazy-ass Kakashi."

A grin broke out. "Ne, Shishou. That happened when I was twelve, seven years ago. You're still going on about it?"

"Who knew what he was thinking, missing your potential like that and focusing only on the boys." Her brows furrowed briefly. "Correction. He only focused on Sasuke. Jiraiya trained Naruto practically from scratch. I would have docked his pay if I was in the Sandaime's shoes." She huffed and then continued, "Well, it's almost time. I'd better go join the others now."

Tsunade have her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, and then left the room.

Left alone, Sakura studied herself in the mirror, barely recognizing herself. Her colored eyes and lips stood out starkly against the whiteness of her face, framed by a white headdress. Her kimono was also white, with the red and white Uchiha crest decorating the back. It was not something she would chose to wear if the choice was hers, but she had to agree to the traditional customs followed by the Uchiha clan.

She should be happy and excited. It was her wedding day, after all. But, hell, she was so nervous that she had to consciously stop her hands from shaking. She felt as if she was about to walk up to a precipice and perch there, all alone. What made it even worse was that her inner self was so silent that she almost wished for her to start ranting again.

The shoji screen to the room she had been stowed in since early this morning slid open with a muffled scrape. A stern, grey-haired Uchiha matron stepped in.

"The ceremony is about to begin."

Sakura nodded, not able to speak past the growing lump in her throat. Nervous? Definitely. Maybe even… terrified? Hell, yes. This whole thing was happening at the speed of an uncontrollable, runaway horse in panic. Sometimes, she wished she had more control over the event, instead of allowing the Uchiha clan to arrange everything to their liking. Then, maybe she would not feel so disconnected and uncertain about this day. Or maybe this whole thing was just wedding jitters.

Her eyes suddenly misted as she thought of her parents. What would her parents make of this? Would they be happy for her? She could admit that they had spoiled their only daughter terribly and would have probably continued to do so if they had not died when she was twelve of some infection they had caught from outside Konoha. It was this tragedy that had pushed her to approach Tsunade for training soon afterwards.

She probably would not feel this unsettled if her parents were here to support her. Even though Tsunade was like a surrogate mother to her for years, Sakura did not think that it was right to tell Tsunade these things. The Hokage might feel that she wanted to back out of things. Which was definitely not what she wanted to do. She had been infatuated with her husband-to-be for a while now, after all. But maybe that was the problem. Although she knew how _she_ felt, she had no idea what _he_ felt for her.

She wished she had someone to talk to about her feelings. But Ino was barely speaking to her and Naruto was, well, as good a friend as he was, Naruto was a guy. Besides, Naruto would just tell her that things would turn out fine. And as much as she looked up to Kakashi, this was not a topic she wanted to broach with him. She was not particularly close to the rest of the group of friends, as she had been spending most of her time working directly under Tsunade these few years and acting as a medic for ANBU teams. She shook her head slowly. The workaholic would turn into a wife today.

"Come, Sakura."

Sakura blinked, jolted out of her thoughts. She allowed herself to be herded out of the room, keeping her eyes lowered as she had frequently been reminded by the matron at her side. Two young Uchiha girls she did not recognize were acting as her attendants, helping her with the very long kimono as she walked. She refused to think that one of them should be Ino.

And the next thing she knew, she was standing by his side.

A sideway glance out of the corner of her eyes revealed his tall figure clad in black formal kimono with the Uchiha crest adorning the front and back. With his black hair swept back, all of his features were displayed prominently for her perusal, something that she rarely had the luxury of doing when they were on missions. He was staring straight ahead, his emotions completely hidden behind his blank façade as always. As long as she had known him, he had never been openly emotional, so she was not unduly concerned. He had always been reserved, after all.

"Are you well?" he asked unexpectedly.

She almost winced. He had not even spared her a single glance, but did she really look so bad? She _did_ get home before midnight last night, although that was neither here nor there because she had spent the rest of the night tossing and turning in bed. It meant that she barely had two hours sleep. The evidence was probably displayed on her face, despite the thick plaster of makeup. Figured that she would look awful for her own wedding.

"Sakura?" her husband-to-be prompted.

Smile, Sakura, smile. Or he would think that she did not want to do this. "I'm fine. Just didn't sleep that well last night."

"Hn."

And that, it seemed, was all he wished to say to his future wife. His attention was now focused fully on the Shinto priest preparing to conduct the ceremony. In less than an hour, she would be his wife. The thought of it made her nervous, not knowing if she would be a satisfactory one or not. Whether or not he would regret asking her.

No, she should not be so pessimistic. She would make him a good wife. It would not be said that she did not give all her best to make her husband happy. They would live happily ever after, as much as possible for a shinobi family, with two and a half kids in a house surrounded by white picket fence.

Yes, neither of them would regret this marriage.

000

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><p>000<p>

A/N: And that's the end of the Prologue. Hope you've enjoyed this so far. As always, please review if you can. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	2. Chapter 1

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing the Prologue. And also thanks to littleredcoat for all her hard work fixing my numerous mistakes. Here's the next chapter, complete with a time skip, up for your reading pleasure.

…

**The Truth behind the Mask ****by elle6778 – Chapter 1 **

**(beta-ed by littleredcoat)**

This mission was not progressing as planned.

Itachi periodically glanced back to check on his comrades as he kept moving forwards. Blades of grass taller than all of them whipped against their bodies as they ran away from their pursuers. Unfortunately one ANBU was injured, which hampered their overall speed somewhat. It was something they did not need, considering how relentless the Sound nins were in their pursuit. This was not unexpected, since one of their vaults had just been broken into by four Konoha nins.

"They are gaining on us!" Tenzou, the injured ANBU rasped out as he stumbled.

Itachi darted a glance sideways at the other pair of ANBU in his squad. "Hyuuga, carry him." He detached a scroll from his vest, throwing it at the Hyuuga. "Protect this."

"Yes, Taichou."

"Return to Konoha while Shiranui and I distract them," Itachi ordered, bringing his hands together to create four clones.

Uncertainty clouded Tenzou's voice as he said, "But there are at least ten of them back there."

"We'll manage. Now go."

Itachi halted as the two obeyed his order and left without him. Then his four clones scattered in diverging directions, while he went in another. It would be difficult to keep his movements secret, as the blades of grass would give away his position swiftly. The clones would help distract the Sound nins, but not for long. He needed to break away from this large expanse of grassland, otherwise they would be forced to battle the Sound nins.

"Shiranui, is there another town or village close by?"

The masked ANBU shook his head. "Not so close by." Jerking his head eastwards, he said, "There is one beyond those mountains."

Itachi knew that there was a town back in the direction they had come from, but it was unlikely that they could backtrack fast enough to reach the town before the Sound nins. He needed to move further away in another direction to divert the Sound nins' attention away from Tenzou and the Hyuuga.

Suddenly, a foreign chakra spiked some distance away.

Before Itachi could react, an explosion cracked through the air. The blast of energy shook the very ground beneath his feet, making him stumble. His Sharingan alight, he turned towards the origin of the commotion. It came from the east where the grassland gave way to some rocky formations.

"What the hell?" Shiranui Genma burst out. "Sound nins?"

"Unlikely."

The Sound nins would not destroy their own country needlessly. Whatever this was it could serve as a distraction, Itachi immediately thought. The only thing he had to do was to get close enough to the explosion that their pursuers would track them there. Once there, he and Shiranui would hopefully lose the Sound nins.

Smoothly, Itachi started to move in the direction where there was now a tall plume of grey smoke and dust mushrooming into the air. It was a visual testament to the magnitude of the explosion that should send fear coursing through anyone who saw it. Itachi, however, was more focused on the fact that it could help his cause.

Slanting a glance at the shinobi close by, who had stopped when he did, Itachi ordered mildly, "Come, Shiranui."

"What? We're heading towards that blast?" the nin returned incredulously.

"Aa."

"There's another fight going on down there. Whatever it is, I'm sure it's none of our business," Shiranui pointed out. "You're thinking of joining in or what?"

"Distraction."

Itachi did not bother explaining further. He knew that Shiranui would obey as always, no matter how much he grumbled beforehand. Without delay he sped off towards his destination. Once they made it there they would bypass the mountains and disappear into the town beyond, where they could blend in with the civilians. The Sound nins would hopefully be distracted by whoever it was that was causing the explosions.

Another spike of chakra pulsed out without warning, followed by a thundering sound of exploding rocks.

Itachi skidded to a stop as recognition slammed through him.

It could not be. She was dead. So why was he sensing her chakra? It was impossible. Wasn't it? Unless… He felt blood rush away from his face, leaving him cold. There was only one explanation he could come up with to justify what he had just sensed.

"Taichou, did you feel that?" Shiranui asked in an unusually grim tone. "That's not who I think it is, is it? Because that chakra feels real familiar."

"Hn."

"You think it's that shit Kabuto used to resurrect dead people?"

He was truly afraid that Shiranui might be right. He was referring to the Edo Tensei jutsu. Had someone used Orochimaru's and Kabuto's resurrection technique to summon her soul into a sacrificial vessel? Whatever it was, he had to find out more.

Itachi followed the plume of smoke and dust, speeding up as urgency overtook him. This time, his intention was not to bypass the commotion. Instead, he was heading straight for it. He was conscious that he should be concentrating on escaping the Sound nins, but at the moment another issue took precedence. The Godaime would no doubt agree with this assessment.

Without even looking at his comrade, he called out, "Let's go, Shiranui."

When they came closer to what used to be a tall rocky formation, he saw that it was now reduced to piles of rubble with dust obscuring the majority of the area. She was somewhere inside the area clouded by the dust. Worse still, the pulse of chakra he had felt earlier was dissipating, making Itachi feel increasingly desperate to find where it had originated from before it disappeared completely.

His sense of urgency multiplied when he sensed another's presence. This stranger's chakra was raw and strong, further solidifying Itachi's suspicion that this entire phenomenon could be the result of Edo Tensei. With gritted teeth, he sped forwards, bent on reaching her, or rather her resurrection.

Then something broke out of the top of the smoke and dust, causing Itachi to stop suddenly to look up. Tensing, he watched as a large white bird, seemingly made out of clay and powered by chakra, shot up higher into the sky.

It was carrying two passengers.

Stopping suddenly and looking up, Shiranui gasped, "What the hell is that?"

"Follow them."

Itachi kept his eyes on the bird as he ran, trying to discern the identity of its passengers. The one in front possessed an impressive chakra level while the smaller one's chakra signature is dormant. They were both cloaked in sky-blue robes, but he could make out a flash of gold underneath the hood of the one in front. This was the one with the chakra powering the bird. The one behind had to be the one who was responsible for the chakra he had recognized earlier.

Was it a resurrection?

Or was it actually her?

"We're not going to reach them, Taichou," Shiranui yelled out a few steps behind him. "They're too fast on that bird."

He realized that no matter how fast they ran the bird was faster. So he stopped and formed a series of seals. A murder of crows burst into life and immediately flew after the white bird. Itachi watched intently as they closed in on the target.

He was not surprised when less than a minute later, what seemed like hundreds of projectiles hit his crows midair and sent all of them spiraling down to the ground.

The chakra-powered creation soared higher, and was soon gone out of sight.

There was no time for Itachi to come up with a plan to pursue them because the next moment, he sensed the Sound nins' approach.

"They are almost upon us. Let's go, Shiranui."

000

000

It was a typical hot, humid day in Waterfall Country. Usually, the air would be filled with the thundering sounds of waterfalls crashing down from the cliffs but at this particular location, the only sound ringing out through the relative silence was the chirping of crickets in the undergrowth.

Sakura remained in her crouched position, her eyes following the movement of the wild boar ahead. It was huge and looked menacing, but it was the loveliest thing she had seen today. But she had to be careful. She was not yet close enough to capture it and the last thing she wanted to do was to spook it. Seeing that the next closest village was a day's travel away, it was important that she caught it because she was hungry and she did not want to wait any longer for food.

Her stomach rumbled in agreement.

Ready, ready… Her eyes narrowed as she prepared to launch at her target.

The leaves overhead rustled loudly, startling both her and the wild boar.

_NO! _

She darted forward, but it was too late. The wild boar was already gone. Growling in frustration, she kicked the nearest tree truck, causing a crack to split through its middle.

"You're hopeless, yeah."

Gritting her teeth, Sakura spun around to glare at her 'partner'. The smirking man was leaning against a large tree trunk with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Shut the hell up!" she shot back, backtracking to snatch her pack off the ground. "I don't see you doing any better," she bit out as she strode away. Her stomach hated her for abandoning the hunt, but she refused to embarrass herself again. Unfortunately, her monstrous strength and perfect chakra control did not come with any notable grace or speed.

The blue-eyed blond kicked off the tree to join her, chuckling as he did so. "Have I ever told you that you're the rudest woman I've ever met?"

"I'm sure you've met many," she tossed back dryly.

"And they all love me."

She shot him a disgusted look. "Most women don't stay long around you, from what I can tell. They don't even last an hour before they walk away." Holding up a finger when he was about to protest, she added, "I've seen it happen with my own two eyes."

"Except you." He waggled his brows. "Wonder what that means, hm?"

"_You_ are the one following me like an irritating pest I can't get rid of," she pointed out heatedly, even though she knew that this particular topic of conversation would head absolutely nowhere. They had had the same 'discussion' almost every day for the greater part of a year now, after all.

"Someone has to keep you out of trouble, yeah."

"And who asked you to volunteer?"

He placed a hand on his chest, feigning hurt. "You can't possibly expect me to leave you to wander around alone. Such a fragile, helpless girl like you will get into all sorts of trouble, yeah."

"Fragile?" She snorted. "I bet you won't think I'm so fragile when my fist meets your mouth."

"Tsk… Such a violent girl. Why do I even keep you around?"

"You're just using me like your personal medic. And that's the only reason you're still here after a year, tagging after me like a puppy."

"Ah, yeah, can't argue that having a personal medic is quite useful at times. Amongst other things," he leered. "Especially when this puppy trails behind you."

Rolling her eyes, Sakura trudged forward.

As per their usual manner, both of them were silent as they journeyed across the unoccupied land. Waterfall Country was beautiful, but this type of beauty was not something Sakura could appreciate when her stomach was cramping up in hunger at regular intervals. It did not help that her 'partner' was lagging behind already.

They travelled for a few more hours before she turned to him irritably. "Hurry up!"

He smirked. "Hungry?"

She actually growled at him. "I'm leaving you behind."

And it was about time too, she added inwardly. It was his fault that she had to be more careful nowadays. Things had been easier when no one noticed her, as disguised as she was with her distinctive hair changed to black and the color of her eyes changed to an unremarkable brown. She had spent a little more than a year traveling cautiously, thankful that no one associated a lone girl with short black hair with a certain pink-haired Haruno Sakura. It had not been hard to achieve, considering her abilities as a medic nin. All she had to do was to ensure that she manipulated the natural melanin levels in her hair follicles to produce the right thing. As along as she did it every few days or so, it kept her hair jet-black without much effort.

Shortly after she had left her hiding place at the south coast of Wind Country, she had encountered this loud-mouth Iwa missing nin. A private client had hired both of them separately, thinking that the job had a better chance of success with two shinobi working on it. She had every intention of finishing the job, getting the money and then going her own way, but Deidara had other ideas.

When he had gotten injured during that mission, she had used her considerable skill to heal him. She really should not have done it, but the medic nin inside her refused to allow her to let him suffer through that gaping hole in his chest. He would have died if she had not done anything.

Now, because of her stupid compassion, she was saddled with the ex-Rock nin. The last thing she needed was someone loud like him by her side all the time when she was trying to keep a low profile. But Deidara was like this dog that refused to leave no matter what she said to him. So there they were still together after a year.

If she had been ruthless like the typical missing nins, she would have killed him to get rid of him. She was still mad at him for what he had done last week. His idiocy was the reason she was now walking in the middle of nowhere instead travelling through civilization, where she could _buy _food instead of hunting. Also, because of that, she could not even dig for information as there was _no one_ around to ask, which meant that she could end up losing her target's trail after covertly following it so far. What annoyed her most was that the explosion in Sound had not been necessary at all. They had gotten what they had gone there for and they could have left sooner. But no… Deidara had to display his _art_ for all to admire_._

Including the Konoha ANBU.

She had caught a glimpse of them as she flew off on Deidara's pet bird, enough to send her into a panic. Their masks and uniforms obscured their identity. But if they knew her or had worked closely with her before disappeared from Konoha one and a half years ago, they were bound to recognize the chakra she had used to bust Deidara out of the collapsed rocks. _If_ they had recognized her, they could potentially find her by tracking Deidara's bird, which they had tried using those crows Deidara had shot down. Worst of all, the crows meant that one of the ANBU was possibly someone she really did not want to see.

She had managed to stay undetected all this time, but Deidara had to mess things up. The threat of being discovered made her feel so agitated that she felt like throttling him.

"You like my company too much. I don't think you can stand to leave me behind, sweetheart," Deidara drawled, drawing her out of her contemplations.

"Don't call me that," she growled irritably and glared at him.

Deidara smirked while reaching forward to tug the black bangs hanging over her eyes. "Alright, Sa-ku-ra-chan."

She tensed at the name. Without fail, each time he uttered her name that way, she was reminded of Konoha and everything she had left behind. Fury roiling through her she paused, and then reached out to snag the neckline of his mesh shirt and yanked him close to her.

His brilliant blue eyes widened as the tip of their noses touched. Even through her anger, she grew uncomfortably aware of just how close her action had brought them. Despite that, she held on long enough for him to look sufficiently apprehensive before she released him.

"And _don't_ call me that either," she hissed. "I'm leaving!"

With that, she turned and stalked away.

000

000

That girl's temper was beautifully explosive.

He would have thought that by now she should have realized that pissing her off was one of his favorite past times. It was fun to see her blow at the slightest provocation. And man, was she easily provoked. It gave him no end of entertainment.

Shaking his head wryly, Deidara grinned and was about to form the seals for his clay bird when he recalled Sakura's agitation over the past one week. For some reason, she was really freaked out about being discovered. Her temper was volatile enough on a good day, but it had gone downhill since that day in Sound. Every little thing seemed to set her off, and not in a good way.

"Girl's probably a nukenin, yeah," he muttered to himself as he fucking _walked_ in the direction of the main road. He could not believe he was actually doing this instead of flying.

She had always been worried about potential clashes with Iwa hunternins since that time when one spotted him and had given chase. Those stubborn bastards just never gave up. It had been _nine_ _years_ since he left the Iwa Explosion Corps at fifteen, gaining freedom from that village and his uptight Sensei, and they were still after him. They should get a life. It was not as if he was targeting their village or anything like that. All he wanted was the freedom to create his art unrestricted by village rules and regulations.

Other than those Iwa hunternins, Sakura had never been too fussed with other villages' shinobi. She had never gone out of her way to avoid them until she had spotted those Konoha ANBU. Seeing them had really done a number on her and it made him curious about her reasons. Every time he tried to pry personal information from her, she'd clam up tighter than a mussel. It was no skin off his back, but it'd be nice to know a little more about someone he had been traveling with for the last year.

He froze mid step. Wait, had it been _a year_ already? Damn. Time sure went by faster than he'd realized, yeah. He scratched his head thoughtfully and continued walking, although now he felt a little uneasy. He had not set out to get close to her, or anyone for that matter, but what else could this be called?

It had all started with that mission in Wind. He'd been looking forward to it because the client actually paid for him to blow up this old hideout. It was occupied by some bandits, but since it was located on a popular black market trade route it was beginning to affect the 'merchants'.

He had turned up at the site only to find Sakura there, this little slip of a girl facing off at least forty bandits. Her stance told him that she was a shinobi. It had briefly crossed his mind that the girl would never survive this fight, but that did not interest him for long. Instead, he had flown past her, catching the dumbstruck expression as she looked up. Her surprised had soon turned to fury when she clearly realized that she would have to fight him for the client fees. The money was never a priority to him, but fuck if he would let her blow up the base buried underneath all that sand with some puny exploding tags.

He would show everyone how it should be done.

The bandits had spotted him then. Chaos had reigned as they split their attention between him and the kunoichi. They had used some large, clumsy artillery to fire cannonballs at him but he was too swift on his bird. He had retaliated by blowing them apart with some minor clay jutsu. Horrified shouts had rung out as one after another they were taken down.

A thundering crack had caught his attention then. And in that one single instant, he had seen the earth fracture under the force of the girl's feet. Ground had exploded upwards with in a cloud of shimmering desert sand and sent her attackers flying in all directions.

It was beautiful.

It was art.

And best of all, it was the _Art of a Single Moment_.

His inattention to the bandits had come at a price though. The fools had managed to aim well enough to stick a cannonball through his bird's wing and then his chest, taking out a chunk of him. Pain had blinded him enough that he lost control and crashed to the ground.

He had looked up at the blindingly bright sky while the hand in his pouch kneaded an army of large clay rats to blow sky high whoever that was stupid enough to come near him. To blow them sky high. The hole in his chest was a problem, but he would deal with that later. Somehow. He had only hoped that the forbidden technique lodged in his chest had survived the injury.

And then someone had blocked the light. He had not been able to make out her features clearly, but he had to be deaf to not hear her spewing curses at _him_ and at herself while she… _what the fuck_… healed him. And then, she had stood up and had the nerve to announce that _she_ would be collecting the client fees. Not him.

No freaking way!

He had released his spiders, allowing them to burrow underground to the base. The girl stomped her feet just as his spiders disappeared from sight. A moment later, the base had exploded under the combined force of her chakra and his clay detonations.

It was an impressive sight.

They had then raced in the direction of the client's base, each intending to arrive before the other. Throughout the half-day journey they had snarled at each other non-stop. Her mouth and foul temper had ignited a response in him, one that he could not ignore, so he had retaliated in kind.

Deidara did not remember having so much fun. Ever.

The client had given them a wary look when they arrived, and wisely paid them _both_ the full fees.

Now a little more than a year later, Deidara felt himself grin when he thought of how he had followed her just to irritate her after that, claiming that he would like a convenient medic at hand. She had tried to lose him countless times, but she had never realized that he had tagged her medic pouch with a very discreet smear of his special clay. Actually, she still had no idea that he could find her anytime he wished, even now, provided she did not leave her precious medic pouch behind.

He grinned wider when he realized just how pissed she would be if she knew.

Now, _that _would definitely be jaw-droppingly explosive.

000

000

Several hours passed but her temper was still frayed. Worse still, there was now this feeling of unease inside her. It was probably just because she was not used to being alone.

She sent out a chakra probe, but much to her relief she sensed nothing behind her. Yes, relief. Because she really didn't need Deidara hanging around her all the time. They were both missing-nins from different countries. They were not supposed to hang out together.

She continued to travel relentlessly through the trees and ignored the hunger pangs. There was no sign of Deidara, which suggested that maybe he finally decided that it was a good idea for them to go their separate ways. Maybe he had decided that if he was alone he would be able to do everything his way instead of having to compromise.

About time too, she thought darkly.

And yet, she could not deny that uncomfortable pang she felt at the thought that he would no longer be around. He'd been with her for so long, and like it or not she had gotten used to him. He was a good partner since their characters melded quite well. Granted, she knew almost nothing about his past but it was the same the other way round as well. What would their relationship be like if they shared their past with each other?

She immediately squashed the thought, dismissing it as pointless musing, the result of her empty stomach. In fact, her empty stomach was also probably responsible for her harsher than usual attitude towards Deidara, she thought with an uncomfortable spike of guilt.

She really needed to stop thinking about all these stuff and concentrate on finding some food.

It was then that she felt a flare of familiar chakra overhead.

Steps slowing, she looked up to find Deidara descending rapidly on one of his clay birds and grinning away like he was so happy to see her. By the time he landed, she had already dropped to the ground and was her head in exasperation. Alright, so maybe she should not be surprised, since the last ten times or so they had 'separated' he had turned up without fail not long afterwards.

Hopping off the bird, Deidara strode towards her with that wide grin still firmly in place and a large sack swung over his shoulder.

"Happy to see me?" he asked, stopping in front of her.

"I thought…" she broke off, knowing that whatever she was about to say would come out all wrong. Instead, she planted her hands on her hips and lifted her chin challengingly. "What are you doing back here?"

"You didn't think you'd get rid of me so easily, hm?"

She scowled darkly at him.

He dropped the sack at her feet. "Here's a present for you."

She eyed it suspiciously. "Present," she echoed flatly, not entirely sure what to think. Deidara could be unpredictable at times, and for all she knew this could be one of the times he thought it was fun to play a practical joke on her. She could open it only to have it blow up in her face. That would not be funny at all.

"A present, yeah. Open it," he ordered, giving her a shove against the shoulder. "I know you don't get many of those. Who wants to give presents to such a bad-tempered girl? But seriously, this one won't kill you."

She tossed him a glare. Still, she cautiously reached for the sack and unraveled the string that bound its end. And then she carefully upended the sack onto the grass.

To find herself faced with a colorful array of fruits.

Her mouth watered as her eyes widened.

"Deidara…"

"I know, I know. You can _thank_ me properly later," he told her with a suggestive leer. "On your knees, maybe, yeah?"

She did not know whether to laugh or to strangle the cocky nin. Instead, she settled for grabbing a large pear and biting into its juicy flesh with a satisfied moan. A few tasty mouthfuls later, the pear was gone and she was reaching out for a peach.

"Thanks, Deidara. Where did you get these?" she asked.

"A travelling vendor. She was transporting the fruits back to Iwa when I bumped into her."

She stilled with the peach halfway to her mouth, concerned by his words. "From Iwa? He didn't recognize you, did he?"

Smirking, he flipped his blond bangs out of his eye. "_She_ was too busy flirting to recognize me."

She ground her teeth together in irritation. "Deidara, this is serious. I mean, it's the reason we're avoiding towns and villages, since Waterfall is so close to both Fire Country and Earth Country. Iwa has hunternins after you and by now, thanks to your blast last week, Konoha is probably after us as well."

Her words must have gotten through to the reckless nin, for he sobered up slightly. "I know, yeah. But the girl was a civilian, and besides I had a henge in place. You expect me not to know a basic technique?"

She let out a relieved sigh and then took a bite of the peach. "Good."

He reached out to tug her hair. "Don't worry, yeah. I'll be fine."

"Who said I was worried?" she shot back.

He swung his arm around her shoulder, and ignored her attempts to shrug it off. "I do."

Sakura snorted.

"So, what has gotten you so riled up about Konoha, hm? I thought you said you're not a missing nin." He raised a brow. "Or is that a lie?" he asked pointedly.

Sakura froze, and then cursed her own carelessness when she realized what she had just blurted out. Without the Konoha hitai-ate, coupled with the change in her hair and eye color, no one could tell that she was from Konoha. She had never volunteered this information to Deidara, though she had mentioned that she was staying in the south coast of Wind Country before she met him.

"So, what is it, hm? You're a Konoha nukenin?" he prompted, the light in his eyes betraying the shrewdness he always hid behind the carefree exterior. "I don't think I've seen you in the Bingo Books though."

"I'm not. And it's not any of your business."

As far as lies went, that was worse than lame. Deidara was clearly unconvinced, based on his knowing smirk.

"How stupid do you think I am, hm? We've been together a year and I haven't seen you as panicked as when the Konoha ANBU saw us. What does that say, yeah?"

She stared down at the half-eaten peach, her appetite suddenly gone. Yes, she had been careless and she had let her guard down around Deidara. To be honest with herself, she was no longer as cautious around him as before. She had allowed herself to get close to him. It was stupid of her and dangerous. But was she able to turn back and start holding him at arm's length again?

She almost groaned out loud. This was not good.

"Oi, Sakura."

She glanced up to find Deidara eyeing her with an expression that looked suspiciously like concern. Discomfited, she scowled sourly at him. "What now?"

He blinked those blue eyes once, twice, and then he grinned. "Just forget it, yeah. Both of us have our little secrets. We don't have to tell each other anything unless we feel like it."

Unable to resist, she asked curiously, "What are your secrets?"

He laughed out loud, drawing a grin from her. "You have some cheek, yeah. I'm not sharing anything until you spill yours." Then he stabbed a finger at her half-eaten peach. "And are you going to eat that or not? I didn't go through all that trouble for you to waste it. It was hard work flirting with that girl, you know."

She rolled her eyes at him, but somehow she felt much lighter in spirit when she started eating again. Deidara might be an ass sometimes, but at other times he could be really sweet.

000

000

A/N: Hope you've all enjoyed the first chapter. Please review if you can. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing Chapter 1. And also thanks to littleredcoat for all her hard work the mistakes I made in this chapter. Here's the next chapter up for your reading pleasure.

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 2<strong>

**(beta-ed by littleredcoat)**

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><p>Lost in his own thoughts, Itachi sat at the bank of the Nakano River.<p>

Ever since the day he had sensed her chakra in Sound, he had been feeling restless. His ignorance of what exactly was happening out there did not sit well with him at all. He still was not certain if what he felt was a resurrection or the real person. She had not been close enough for him to determine which one it was.

How could she possibly be alive?

Even though her body had never been found, the evidence of her death had been strong enough to dispel any doubts. There had been too much blood and mangled flesh interspersed by strands of pink. According to a somber Kakashi, who had been the one sent to look for her when she had failed to return from her mission, no one could survive that. Based on other things he had found on the site, Kakashi had also deduced that she had been ambushed by rogue nins.

So what exactly had he come upon one week ago?

Tsunade had looked grim when he and Shiranui had reported on the sighting, but she only told them that she would look into it. Itachi could not imagine how horrified she must feel at the possibility that her surrogate daughter was being resurrected. He had requested that she keep him updated on any progress on that front, but she seemed distracted and had simply waved them away.

Several weeks had passed now and he had heard nothing on the topic. If Tsunade had not found Sakura using her slug summons, it could mean that she was merely a resurrection. The very idea that the once vibrant kunoichi was being used as a puppet thoroughly disgusted him. She did not deserve such a fate.

Itachi still remembered the first time he had noticed her. Under their mother's request, the twelve-years-old Sasuke had reluctantly invited his two new genin teammates and their sensei home for dinner. His first assessment of Sakura's conduct was that she would not make it far as a kunoichi at all, not unless there was a drastic change in her attitude. The girl had been unable to keep from simpering at Sasuke throughout dinner, much to Sasuke's discomfort. Then, not much further into the very same meal, Itachi had promptly changed his mind when she had violently smacked Naruto upside the head. Her eyes had flashed with temper as she told the blond off for speaking with his mouth full. Itachi had finally concluded that the girl had spirit and could potentially go far if she did not allow herself to be distracted by her attraction to Sasuke.

A few years later, Sakura had managed to become one of the top medics in Konoha, second only to Tsunade. So it had not come as a surprise when at eighteen, she had begun preparations and training for the ANBU intake examinations. Tsunade had placed Sakura with his ANBU team for her field training and that was when he had gotten to know her better. He had learnt in the half a year of missions that Sakura was more than ready for ANBU, as well as the fact that her true personality was not the simpering version, but the aggressive and no-nonsense attitude she had always used when dealing with Naruto. In fact, her determination and explosive temper had become a great source of fascination and amusement to him over those months. He had no doubt the frequently-battered Shiranui Genma would agree with him.

All this convinced him that she would not be so foolish as to agree to the absurd marriage proposal that had stemmed only from Fugaku's ambition to get closer to the Hokage. However, much to Itachi's bewilderment, Sakura had actually accepted. He had not expected her to go through with it. Things had gone from bad to worse when he saw her spirit being dampened under the pressure of the Uchiha clan.

Itachi clenched his fists, realizing then that he had hoped that against all odds that she was still alive. He always felt the pressing need to make things right for her.

It was sheer foolishness.

He should be focusing on his mission, the one that could potentially mean another war if he did not succeed. Fortunately, there had been some progress over the past year. They had managed to convince Onoki to use his special technique to pinpoint the stone tablet's original hiding place in Earth Country's mountain range. Onoki had demanded payment in the form of two of Tsunade's specialized medical jutsu but it had been worth it.

The Tsuchikage had succeeded in locating where the stone tablet had _once_ been buried. Unfortunately, they had also found out on that day that the stone tablet had broken into five separate pieces upon Madara's death and the sections would only be visible one thousand and eight hundred days after that day.

That one thousand and eight hundred days had ended just a few months ago, whereupon Itachi had finally come across some useful information. There had been a handful of sightings of an image floating in the sky of something which looked like a slab of engraved stone. It was rumored to appear in the desert sky in northern Wind Country during the full moon each month, formed from suspended particles of sand. However, it was not visible to everyone.

When he and his ANBU team had gone to investigate the rumor during the last full moon, he had been able to see the floating particles. However, only one out of his three teammates had been able to do the same. He had attempted to touch it, only to find that it was protected by something akin to the Kazekage's ultimate defense. Long fingers of sand had slashed at him each time he tried to approach the floating image.

That was when it became clear that in order to reach it, they needed the Kazekage's assistance. When the Hokage had explained the situation, the Kazekage agreed to assist, but like the Tsuchikage, he did not expect to do it for free.

Sabaku-no-Gaara wanted a certain scroll from Sound, but he did not wish Suna to be implicated in the crime. The relationship between Suna and Oto had always been shaky.

Now, with that particular Sound scroll in Konoha's hand, and ready to be handed over to the Kazekage as payment, they were closer to obtaining the stone tablet. If anyone could get their hands on the stone tablet, it would be the Kazekage.

The rustling sound nearby told him that he was no longer alone. As usual, his cousin was the one to interrupt his musings. The man seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to disturbing his peace.

"Oi, Itachi."

He did not look up as he greeted, "Shisui." Then, a second later, he observed, "You're a clone."

"The clan meeting has started so I can't leave, so I created a clone to fetch you."

"I'm not attending."

Shisui's clone sat down beside him. "I think you need to come."

Itachi tensed, at then glanced sideways at his cousin. "Trouble?"

Shisui nodded. "Back to the old grumblings of how the Uchiha is made subservient when we're the most powerful clan. You know the rest." He sighed heavily. "At least they stopped the nonsense when Sakura was around."

Itachi almost winced. It seemed to be the only good thing that came out of that wreck of a marriage. Everything else had gone as wrong as it could have.

"Now, without any solid hope to progress further up the political ladder, the elders are stirring up trouble again," Shisui grumbled. "We really don't need this."

"Perhaps one of them should find a Senju woman to marry," Itachi intoned drily.

"The only one left is the Hokage." A bark of laughter escaped his cousin. "I can just see Hikaku-Ojisan proposing to Tsunade-sama."

Itachi felt his lips twitch in amusement. He had no doubt that the Hokage would send Uchiha Hikaku flying through her office window to land miles outside Konoha should he be foolish enough to propose to her. Not to mention he was a couple of decades younger than the Hokage.

"Come on, Itachi. Let's go."

Knowing that he did not have much of a choice, he stood up with a heavy sigh and left.

000

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><p>000<p>

"You're being paranoid. No one is following us, yeah."

Sakura peeked out of the hood of her sand-colored cloak, scowling at Deidara. "I'm not being paranoid," she protested.

"Tsk!" Shaking his head, Deidara continued to walk down the crowded street.

It was dawn in a small village to the north-east of Suna. For the past two weeks, based on a quiet word she had with a fresh produce vendor in a Waterfall Country village, she had been gradually steering them to Wind Country, picking up minor missions along the route.

She stopped at a fruit and vegetable stall.

"Good morning, Ne-san!" the young blonde girl behind the stall greeted with a sweet smile.

"Good morning."

"Our apples are really good today. Sweet and crisp." She gestured at the oranges. "And we have a twenty percent discount on these if you buy more than five."

Sakura smiled. "That's good." She picked up an orange to look at briefly before she reached for the tomatoes. They were red and a little bruised, and there were not many on display.

"Those look a little soft, yeah," Deidara muttered behind her.

Ignoring him, she asked, "How much are these?"

The girl named a price, grimacing as she did so. "I know they are a little expensive. We can't grow them here so they're imported. We're the only stall here that has any."

She nodded. "Tomatoes are not so popular with the locals here?"

"Not really."

"That's tough. At least visitors like us buy them, right?"

The girl shook her head with a sigh. "There aren't that many visitors hereabouts. And I don't remember the last one who bought tomatoes. Must have been months ago. Good thing I quite like them myself, so whenever they don't sell, I'll eat them." Her eyes went to Deidara. "What about you, Nii-san? Would you like some?"

"Hate tomatoes, yeah."

Sakura elbowed him, and then picked up a couple of apples and a tomato. "I'll take these."

The girl placed her selection into a paper bag and then took the payment for it. "Thank you, Ne-san. Have a good journey."

Walking away, she took out the tomato and bit into it, savoring the sweet-tart flavor. Tomatoes always brought back memories of Sasuke. She remembered how the lunch boxes his mother had packed for him would always have tomatoes in them, and how Naruto would tease Sasuke about his 'diet'. Those genin days were some of the best days in her life.

Shaking the memories away, she finished the tomato and took one apple for herself, passing the other to Deidara. Together, they walked further into the village as they finished their fruits.

"I'm still hungry, yeah. You want to grab something else to eat?"

Sakura shook her head absently, her eyes already locking on a small domed building with black smoke rising from its chimney. It looked like she might find a blacksmith there. "I want to check that place out. It might have some useful weapons we can get."

Deidara eyed it without much interest. But he muttered, "Maybe I should get a new supply of kunai."

"I can get it for you if you want." She turned to him then. "And you can go get me some anko dumplings."

He raised a brow at her. "Is that an order? Did I offer to buy you food? Do I look like a lowly servant to you, hm?"

She rolled her eyes. "Are you getting it or not?"

Tapping his right cheek, he said, "A kiss here is all I ask for in payment, yeah."

Sakura shot him a glare.

"Or maybe on my lips?" he suggested innocently.

"Deidara…" she ground out in warning.

Chuckling, Deidara held up both hands. "Fine, fine. No kisses. Those anko dumplings won't fill you up much. I'm getting some onigiri for myself, yeah. I'm sure you won't object to some umeboshi ones, hm?"

"I guess."

It still surprised her just how well he knew her. But then again, they _had_ spent practically every waking hour together for the past year. It occurred to her then that despite her brusqueness with him and their constant bickering, she actually _liked_ Deidara after she had gotten to know him.

Or perhaps that was just her old loneliness talking. With him, she had never experienced that debilitating feeling of being not good enough. Deidara made her feel like herself. She might not share everything about her past with him, but she had never needed to pretend to be someone she wasn't. Sometimes, this made her want to pull him into a big hug. She would, if not for the fact that he would probably try to grope her.

And he was even buying her lunch today. Again.

"What's with that look, hm?" he asked softly.

Suddenly, his face was far, far too close to hers. So close that their noses were almost touching. She could see the darkening blue hue of his irises and feel his warm breath on her face, and the intimate sensation sent goosebumps rising over her arms. The back of her neck grew heated and her breath caught in her throat.

Confused and discomfited, she jerked back and the moment was broken.

Turning away, she muttered, "Let's make a move. We'll meet back in front of the apothecary."

And then she fled.

Fled. Because she refused to let him see the flush on her cheeks or anything else that might betray her unease.

What the hell was wrong with her? All these signs pointed to the fact that she was attracted to Deidara. What was she doing? She could not allow herself to be distracted like this. Things usually ended badly for her when she allowed herself to feel any kind of interest for someone. She only had to remember what she had gone through for the last man she had feelings for. It was about as bad as things could get. Why would she risk putting herself in that position again? It was not worth it. Besides, he was not even her usual type.

She scowled inwardly. Come to think of it, her usual type was the cause of the biggest heartbreak she had ever experienced in her life. Perhaps it was time to rethink her preferences.

The sight of the domed building shifted her attention. As she drew closer to the building, she could see that there was a large opening to one side. Edging closer, she called out, "Hello?"

A sweat-slicked shaven head popped out. He looked to be about a few years older than her own twenty-one, the bulging muscles peeking out of the soot-stained apron telling her that he was not new to physical work.

"You're the blacksmith?" she asked.

"Yes," the young man acknowledged with a nod. "Can I help?"

"I'm just looking to buy some new weapons."

"Ah." He scratched the back of his neck, looking sheepish. "We don't sell directly to customers. Our products usually go to Sunagakure. But you can try the shop in the next village, around twenty miles to the west. They have a good selection of imported weapons there."

Oh, she thought, disappointed.

"I'm sorry I can't help you," the man said, drawing her out of her contemplations. "Try the other village."

Smiling at him, she said, "Thank you. I think I'll do that."

000

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><p>000<p>

Itachi stood in the middle of what seemed like a never-ending expanse of desert, where nothing but the sky, the full moon, the sand dunes and the occasional cacti could be seen from his position. He could see why some chose to stay in this country. At times like this it was eerily beautiful.

He glanced up at the shimmering image of part of a stone tablet floating in the sky. "Kazekage-sama. Do you see it?"

"I don't see it." Suna's leader looked puzzled. "But two of my shinobi had reported sightings of it in the past."

Itachi pointed northwards in the direction of the tablet. "It is there. You might be able to feel a concentration of energy."

The Kazekage stilled, closing his eyes. The fact that not everyone could see the image intrigued Itachi. At first, he had thought that the Hyuuga, possessing the Byakugan, would be able to see it, but that was not the case. Apparently, one needn't possess a doujutsu to be able to see it. One only needed to have a particular bloodline or ability. Tenzou, who was acting as a lookout for them right at this moment, was able to see the stone tablet. The two Suna nins who had seen it were related to a clan possessing a powerful wind-based kekkei-genkai. However, their own kekkei-genkai was comparatively weak, for the bloodline had gradually diluted over the generations.

The Kazekage tensed suddenly, his eyes opening, letting Itachi know that he had sensed the presence of the shimmering stone tablet.

"I found it."

The sand from the Kazekage's gourd shot out to surround the location where the tablet was. Almost immediately, the desert sand shot upwards to intercept the Kazekage's sand. The Kazekage pulled back his sand, and the desert sand subsided in response.

"There is a sentient barrier around it," the younger man remarked quietly. "Interesting."

"Aa."

The Kazekage stayed still for a while, mulling over his options. A few minutes later, he nodded decisively. "I know what to do."

As he watched, the Kazekage directed his sand to spread out thinly over the ground nearest to the hovering image of the stone tablet. The particles of sand seemed to be sinking into the ground, mixing with the desert sand. The Kazekage carried on until his gourd was empty. Then he brought his hands together to perform a series of seals. When the technique took hold, the air began to vibrate with power. Even the sand beneath Itachi's feet began to shift.

"Move back, Uchiha."

With a nod, Itachi leapt backwards. At the same time, a disc of sand formed under the Kazekage's feet, lifting him up into the air.

The sand continued to shift in larger and larger waves, radiating outwards from the area closest to the stone tablet. A recessed circle began to appear as more sand was displaced. There were a few black marks visible, but it was still mostly obscured.

A minute later, the trembling stopped and there was a deep crater in the middle of the desert under the suspended stone tablet. At the base of the crater was a circular pattern of black seals. There was something dark and sinister about it, Itachi could not help but think. However, considering that it had a connected to Madara, that should not be too surprising.

The Kazekage frowned at the seals. "This is unfamiliar to me."

Itachi studied the patterns. "It is not Konoha's." After a brief pause, he called out, "Tenzou."

The older ANBU appeared in a cloud of smoke. "Yes, Taichou?"

"Can you disable the seals?"

Tenzou went closer, squatting down beside the outer perimeter of the patterns of seals. He studied it for a while and then said, "Aa."

"Disable it, then."

Tenzou sat down cross-legged, and then formed a long, complicated string of seals before he pressed his hands down to the ground. Chakra spread out from his hands and drifted forwards to his target. The black symbols began to waver as his chakra hit them. It took Tenzou some time, but eventually, the symbols faded completely.

Almost immediately, particles of sand up in the air coalesced into a solid mass, giving shape to a segment of a stone tablet. Engraved on it were jutsu symbols which were incomplete. Itachi suspected that the information would only make sense if all five segments of the stone tablet were reassembled.

Using his chakra-powered sand to bring the segment of the tablet to him, the Kazekage studied it with interest. From where he stood, Itachi could make out some of the markings, but knew that with only one segment, one could not do much with it. They needed all five segments.

"To think that such an innocent looking object could be so powerful," the Kazekage murmured thoughtfully. "This stone tablet is dangerous."

"Aa."

Especially in the wrong hands. The one who possessed the complete stone tablet would have the means to absorb their enemy's kekkei genkai, wiping the bloodline limit away from the original clans. By doing so repeatedly, one could assume the position of superiority over others. Or so they hoped. It was an underhanded manner of achieving power, one which disgusted Itachi.

The Kazekage stared at him meaningfully. "The Hokage is certain of her decision?"

Itachi inclined his head. "Yes. You are to safeguard this segment. We cannot afford for any of the pieces to fall into enemy hands or reassembled."

The Kazekage eyed the segment of the tablet warily. "Suna is… honored by the Hokage's faith."

"The Hokage appreciates your assistance." Reaching into his vest, Itachi retrieved the Sound scroll and held it out. "As requested."

The redhead received it with a nod. With a few flicks of his fingers, the scroll unfurled. Seemingly satisfied with what he saw, he said, "Thank you."

Itachi hid his surprise that the contents were so easily revealed. Konoha nins had attempted to open the scroll ever since they had obtained it, but was never successful. No one knew what the scroll contained.

As if reading his thoughts, the red-haired leader of Suna supplied, "It is something Orochimaru held over my father to ensure his cooperation during the attack on Konoha years ago."

"Aa." Watching the still-floating tablet segment, Itachi asked, "May I inspect the tablet?"

The Kazekage gave him a questioning look.

"This one might provide a clue as to where the others are located," Itachi explained.

"Very well."

A few seals later, a murder of crows burst into existence. They encircled the tablet, studying it. Itachi had to assume that the rest of the segments possessed similar energy characteristics. That was the only lead they had.

"If you wish, one of my sensor nins could assist in the search," the Kazekage suggested.

"We will keep the offer in mind, Kazekage-sama."

Task completed, both he and Tenzou followed the Kazekage back to Suna.

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Deidara glared sideways at the kunoichi walking along with him. She was silent, brows furrowed as if she was preoccupied with some important debate in her head. Or maybe she was just ignoring him, knowing that he was not happy about their latest mission.

How the hell did she expect him to be happy with it? She had been completely out of line this time. It was his turn to pick the mission and he had seen something absolutely perfect in the contact's books; taking out a whole clan of shinobi in Lightning Country. Instead, she had chosen a mission close by, meaning that they would be staying here three nights in a row, something which carried no small amount of risk for missing nins like them. People would start to remember them after three days.

He was about to open his mouth to voice his complaints when she stopped and then turned towards him. She still looked distracted and it sent suspicion rushing through him. She had been doing some strange things lately.

"I need to go off for a while. I'll be back in a couple of hours."

So he was right to be suspicious. "Go off? What do you mean, go off?" He scowled at her. Normally, something like this was no big deal since both of them had their own private shit to deal with. But today, he didn't feel like backing away. "You went off in the middle of last night as well."

Her eyes narrowed. "You were spying on me?"

"Tch! Don't change the subject, yeah. You expect me not to notice when you crawl out of the window in the middle of the night? What do you think I am, hm? A genin?"

"It's none of your business what I do in the middle of the night."

"Fine! You could be screwing half of the village for all I care, yeah." Her face went red, but he charged on, "What I want to know is why the fuck you took this lame ass mission? Pay's shit compared to the one in Lightning."

"The Lightning one? The client wants an extermination of a Lightning Country clan!" she shot back incredulously. "Are you out of your mind?"

Sometimes, he forgot how soft-hearted she was. It was irritating as hell. "I go along with that bleeding heart shit of yours often enough, yeah. Will it kill you to go on _my_ sort of mission for once?"

Her expression turned stony. "Feel free to leave."

He groaned out loud. Not this again. He was so exasperated he could almost feel her scrawny neck snapping under his fingers. Hell, he _should_ walk away. But then, he would be missing a personal medic. Besides, she was pretty amusing at times and they worked well together. He could do worse than to have a partner like her.

He snorted inwardly. Why couldn't he just admit that he had grown attached to the girl?

Without waiting for him to respond, she spun around and walked away while he stood there like a fool glaring at her retreating back. When she had disappeared off into an alley, he decided to follow her. Usually, he did not care what she was up to, but whatever that gotten her so preoccupied this time might indirectly affect him when she was distracted during their mission. So it was best that he found out what it was.

Besides, he was curious.

He usually never cared enough to mask his chakra. If any fools decided to attack him, then it was their funeral. But Sakura would know that she was being followed if he did not bother to mask it this time. So, reluctantly hiding his signature, he trailed after her.

After an hour, he realized that she had planted false trails, one of which he had followed. Aside from pissing him off royally, this also made him wonder what exactly was she hiding that was so important. Yes, the unwritten rule about their partnership was to mind their own businesses, but still…

Shaking his head, he continued to hunt for her, this time shaping clay ants to help him search. Fifteen minutes later, information came through from one of them. Ten minutes later, he was at the outskirts of the village. There were upturned delivery wagons scattered here and there amongst the cacti and palms, but there was no one in sight. Where the hell was she? This was where his ant had said she was.

Then he saw a movement between a cluster of broken wagons. There was a flash of something which looked like black swirl on orange. And-

An enormous, prickly cactus flew towards his head.

"What the fuck-"

He ducked as the cactus whipped over his head. And when he looked up, a scowling Sakura was there, holding the damned cactus between her gloved hands like it was some kind of giant bat. The fat, spiky thing was at least ten feet long. It was just wrong to see someone as petite as her swinging something like that around without breaking a sweat.

And it was hell of a turn on.

"I can't believe you're following me," she snarled. "What happened to privacy, huh?"

He straightened, frowning. "You almost smashed my head with that cactus!" he accused irritably. "Put it down, yeah!"

Sakura arched a brow. "Yeah?"

She swung it at him again, forcing him to leap away. Once he landed on his feet, he glowered at her. "Enough, yeah. That's just not on!"

"What is _not on_ is the way you're spying on me." She threw the cactus to the side like it was just a twig, and then brushed the needles off her gloves before planting her hands on her hips. "I'm not happy about this, Deidara. I thought I could trust you."

He snorted at the word. "Trust? Sakura, please. 'Trust' is an expletive in a missing nin's vocabulary."

She rolled her eyes. "Just don't follow me again. Or I'll make you sorry."

"What were you doing out here?"

She shrugged. "Personal."

He huffed, knowing that he would get nowhere this time. Still, he could always try it again the next time she disappeared. Sooner or later, he would get lucky and catch her in the act. Whatever the act was.

"If you're done nosing about, then let's go, Deidara."

"What? Go where?" He glanced up to the sky. It was only mid afternoon. The mission was not due to start until night.

Sakura beamed at him. "Clothes shopping."

Deidara groaned out loud.

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The sun had risen up high in the sky, and was now in the process of descending. His weariness was bone-deep when Itachi had finally reached the border village between Wind Country and River Country. Tenzou had chosen to accept the Kazekage's hospitality and stay the night before returning to Konoha. Itachi, however, did not wish to delay his journey. As it was, it would take a few days to reach Konoha. So he travelled until the night turned into day, and was now turning into night again.

Once in the village, he walked until he found the flapping sign denoting the entrance to the one and only inn there. He walked up to the reception desk and requested a room. The lady gave him an appreciative look, the sort which he often received and wished that he didn't, before she slid him the keys.

"First floor. Up the stairs and turn left. The room is at the very end." She smiled at him. "It's one of our better ones."

Thanking her quietly, he took the keys and followed her directions to his room. As he walked down the corridor, he wondered just how long it would take before he received news from the rest of his crows. Or even whether the step he had taken would even be fruitful. Still, he had to be patient. It would take time for the crows to scour all the different countries. It could be weeks before he even heard anything.

Loud, obnoxious laughter filtered through the thin walls.

"_I can't believe you're planning on turning up like that. The dress looks terrible like that, yeah." _

"_What is that supposed to mean? Why don't you wear the dress if you think you can make it look better?" _

Itachi stiffened, and his steps halted.

The voice.

"_I would, except I don't have the necessary curves, yeah… Not that you have much of those to speak of in the first place." _

"_WHAT did you say? You DID NOT just insult me!" _

"_Just pointing out the obvious… or the not-so-obvious. Seriously, though. You need to lose those chest bindings and pull the dress down a little. It's not meant to be worn so high. Can't you see it looks ridiculous, hm? Stop wasting time and trust me for once." _

The words spoken by the male and the female rushed through Itachi's mind as he struggled to process what he was hearing. There was no mistaking that female voice. Coupled by what he had detected a few weeks ago, this could no longer be a coincidence. But how? And why? The girl seemed to be speaking freely, which suggested that her existence was not the result of Edo Tensei.

There were indistinct shuffles, muttering, and murmurs from within now. As hard as he strained to hear, Itachi could not discern their conversation. He expanded his senses, probing for more information on their identity. He had not been able to do this before as they were too far up in the air, but this time, they were close enough.

He could feel the male's unrestrained chakra, raw and strong. It was the exact same signature he had felt back in Sound. He learnt nothing about the female except that she was subduing her chakra, giving the impression that she was a mere civilian. He would have believed that if he had not felt her chakra spike the last time he saw them.

"_There! Is this better?"_

A soft wolf whistle sounded. The man was undoubtedly leering. Itachi's jaw tightened, but he fought the urge to force open the door to confirm his suspicions.

"_Hm, much better!" _

A snort followed that proclamation.

"_Let's make a move then. We don't want to turn up late. It would attract too much attention. Wait, let me fix your tie. And please, don't blow up anything this time, alright? Try to do subtle for once."_

"_Spoilsport. I still can't believe you took this mission for us, yeah." _

"_You know why, so stop whining about it." _

"_Tch! Let's just get this over with then." _

The moment the door opened, Itachi knew that he would be discovered. That would not do. He needed more information before he could allow them to see him.

With that thought, he sped silently to his room, opened the door and disappeared within just in time to hear their door open. He waited for their presence to fade before he exited his room and proceeded to trail them, his expression grim.

If the female in there was truly Sakura, then he required some answers from her.

Before he brought her back to Konoha.

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. The story will speed up in a couple of chapters after I get all the background out of the way. As always I would love it if you could leave a review. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing Chapter 2 and also to littleredcoat for editing out the mistakes in this latest chapter. Without further ado, here's Chapter 3.

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**The Truth behind the Mask ****by elle6778 – Chapter 3 **

**(beta-ed by littleredcoat)**

It was a beautiful night tonight. The weather was perfectly mild and the sky was so clear that one could easily see the dusting of stars all over the inky background.

Sakura inhaled deeply as she smiled, giving the impression that she was looking forward to joining the party as she walked up the graveled driveway to the large mansion ahead. In reality, for the past few minutes she had been taking note of the large number of guards and their positions. From what she could tell, they were all civilians. The security was still tight, but that was to be expected because many highly priced collector's items would be auctioned off tonight to the wealthy guests.

Lips twisting wryly, she glanced down at the long dress under the matching hooded wrap, held up by thin straps and slit up the sides for the ease of movement. Frankly, she was a little uncomfortable with the low neckline, especially since she was not wearing anything under it, thanks to Deidara's insistence. But he was right. She had looked odd earlier wearing her chest bindings under this blue dress. It also occurred to her that she would never have been able to pull off this color with her original pink hair, but it went well with her current black hair. Like Deidara's black suit, the cost of her dress was covered by the client who commissioned this job. Their clothes probably cost as much as what they were getting paid for the task tonight. Yet, it was necessary for them to fit in with the rich crowd.

Just as they neared the double doors of the mansion, she glanced up at Deidara. His black jacket hugged his slender figure well, meaning that he had to leave the bulk of his clay some distance outside the compound walls. Dressed up this way, he looked every bit the rich playboy with his long hair slicked back and tied at the base of his neck. His relaxed smirk and confident gait added to the illusion.

"I know I look good, yeah. But you need to control yourself and stop eating me up with your eyes."

She jerked her gaze away. "Just making sure you don't embarrass me," she bit out irritably.

He snorted in amusement.

The guards opened the doors, allowing them to enter the high-ceilinged lobby. Her gaze swept the area swiftly, noting a stair sweeping over them to what was clearly a private first floor and a ground level registration area manned by four men directly in front of an ornate double door.

Sakura bit back a groan.

These four were clearly shinobi. They walked up to the registration desk and presented their tickets.

"Minamoto-san," one of them greeted, looking up from the tickets. "Welcome."

Deidara merely nodded, while she smiled.

Another one held out his hand. "If we could have your wrists please?"

"What is that?" Sakura asked, eyeing the plastic tag in his other hand.

"Standard procedure to make sure there are no gate-crashers," the shinobi told her. "Makes sure only paying guests get in."

Deidara scowled. "Damned ugly things."

Shrugging, she gave him her hand. Sakura watched silently as they attached the wrist tag to her and did the same to Deidara. They might play it off as nothing, but she had seen these before.

Once tagged, they went to the ornate door and pushed it open. A cacophony of noise assaulted them from the crowded area. Well-dressed guests were milling about, drinking all manners of intoxicants as they awaited the auction to begin.

"Oh, this is just great, yeah," Deidara muttered after they entered the main room.

She smiled widely at him, just in case anyone was looking. It was unlikely that anyone would pay attention to them, seeing that this affair was pretty open to anyone who could afford the exorbitant price of the ticket. No one was mingling at all, instead keeping to their own groups which was good since people would not be paying them much attention.

"The chakra tags on our wrists. They will know if we use chakra before we leave this place."

He looked annoyed. "It's a pain, yeah."

Picking up a glass of juice from the side table, she raised a brow. "Surely you remember your basics."

He snorted, and then grinned at her. "Yeah, sure."

A passing waiter slid by and Deidara snagged a fluted glass. Sakura hid her disapproval between gritted teeth as he downed the alcoholic contents in one long gulp. Then, as if sensing her displeasure, he grinned and gestured for a different waiter to serve him her tray. This time, he took two tumblers filled with amber liquid.

Offering her one, he said, "You should have a drink while we wait, yeah."

She raised the glass of juice to his face. "I am drinking," she intoned drily.

He gave hers a disgusted look. "_That_ is not a drink."

When he swallowed his second drink, which looked like some lethally potent foreign spirit, she ground out, "You're trying to get drunk here?"

He grinned, and then tilted the contents of the last tumbler into his mouth. "Why? Worried that I'll seduce you?"

"Will you be serious?" she bit out irritably. "We need to think of some way around this chakra tag."

"We'll be fine."

They lingered in the crowded area until it was almost time for the auction. Then both of them slipped away to the washroom area. They had studied the blueprints earlier that evening and knew that they could reach their objective from the service passage at the back of the washroom. Everything went according to their plans until they reached the room where a certain diamond necklace was being displayed on a raised pedestal. Both of them stood there clearly sensing the same thing.

Deidara groaned in defeat, running a hand down his face. "This can't be happening," he rasped irritably.

Sakura sensed the energy around the display as well. "It has some sort of chakra around it. If we touch it, the barrier will be disrupted and they will come running."

"I know! Let me think!"

She glanced around, not seeing any windows. "We can't just make a grab for it and then run. There are too many people going up and down the hallway."

Expression grim, Deidara took out some of his clay from a hidden pack under his clothes. Pulling off a glove, he began to knead rapidly, his eyes not leaving the large diamond pendant dangling on the chain. "Get ready to move really, really fast, Sakura."

"Your chakra…"

"Not needed. It's already in the clay. Will be done in just a second," he interrupted, and then held up a perfect replica of the jewel and another of a rat. "I have a plan. Cast a genjutsu on the clay to look like the jewel when I disrupt the chakra barrier around the real one."

"Disturbing the barrier to hide our chakra use? It's too risky."

"Don't have many options here, yeah. Just trust me on this and follow my lead."

She nodded, her fingers already pulling at the chakra tag around her wrist. They had worked together long enough that she understood that he was confident his plan would work.

"We won't have much time once I set things in motion, yeah."

"I'm ready."

"One, two… go!"

As Deidara reached in, she cast the strongest genjutsu she could manage to make the clay construct look like the real thing. A moment later, the real diamond necklace was in Deidara's hand. He wasted no time in sealing their acquisition into the clay rat and then released it to escape while she refastened the chakra tag.

Deidara shoved her urgently. "Go to that desk, quickly!"

"What the-" her words broke off when he slipped the fake necklace over her neck. It dangled between her breasts, cold and heavy. She wouldn't have been able to tell that it was a replica.

The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the edge of the desk, her legs spread wide around Deidara's hip. Her eyes widened in comprehension of his intentions. _This _was his plan? Irritation coursed through her, even as her heart sped up in dread. Or was it anticipation? No, definitely not anticipation. The last time they had touched like this was almost a year ago and she had felt nothing then. This would be pretty much the same, she suspected.

"Don't take it too far," she warned sternly as she shrugged off her hooded wrap and then yanked at the hemline of the dress, dragging it up to her hip, exposing her naked legs to anyone who cared to enter the room. "I'm serious, Deidara."

He smirked as he pulled down the left shoulder strap of her dress, stopping only an precarious inch before her nipple was exposed. "Don't worry. I'm going to make sure you like it, yeah. I know I'll love it."

Way to be sarcastic, Deidara, she thought darkly. Despite his frequent dirty innuendos, she was certain that he felt nothing for her on this front. After that last time, he had pretty much made it clear that it was the worst kiss he had experienced. She should feel safe enough in his hands. The only problem would be to act convincing enough to fool others.

The moment his hot lips met the junction between her neck and shoulder, Sakura froze even though she knew what was coming, her fingers gripping the desk hard. He pressed closer, aligning their bodies tight against each other. This close, she could feel the tension thrumming through his muscles, but that was to be expected considering what they were about to act out.

"Relax, yeah," he murmured, and then licked a little. "Or else no one's going to believe this."

Her eyes fluttered shut when he began to nibble and suck up her neck, unable to help her reaction even though it disturbed her just how much better it felt this time round. His warm breath brushed her skin with each of his exhales, and she could feel his hands kneading her hips and then up her back to thread his gloved fingers through her hair. He nipped her jawline, intermittently soothing it with tiny licks, and she shivered in response.

Wait, what was going on here? It was not supposed to be like this. She needed to tell him no, but…

Then he tilted her head to the other side and repeated his caresses. His lips were more urgent this time, his movements hungrier. The fingers which had been holding her loosely earlier were now pressing harder against her nape. When he reached the pulse point under her ear, he sucked hard and with each draw, something inside her contracted.

A strangled moan escaped her as pleasure shot through her veins. This felt so good. Her rapidly dissolving mind registered that her own hands had left the edge of the desk and slid up his back to wrap around the back of his neck, and her legs had clamped around him to pull him closer.

Her eyes shot wide open when she encountered the hard evidence of his arousal, just as he hissed loudly and jerked back. When their eyes met, his were the color of a stormy sky and the expression within was just as turbulent. He seemed as astonished as she was.

Footsteps sounded outside the door.

Deidara smashed his lips to the corner of hers. In one insane part of her mind, she could not help but wonder why he did not simply kiss her. Until she recalled just how he had reacted the last time they had kissed.

It felt as if she was doused by cold water.

The door swung open.

"You two! What are you doing in here?"

Deidara tensed, and then lifted himself off her. She sucked in a breath and shielded her eyes from the overhead lights which had just come on. Her heart was still thundering and her breaths coming out in pants. She did not even need to pretend to be stunned as she struggled to put her clothes to rights.

Deidara had his back to her as he yelled, "Get the hell out of here. Can't you see we're busy?"

Four mercenary nins strode straight up to him, their expressions furious. One of them spotted the necklace around her neck and scowled darkly as he forcibly yanked Deidara aside.

"Watch what you're doing, you bastard!" he yelled as he stumbled, giving a great show of being clumsy. "What's your problem?"

Then she cried out, feigning fear as the necklace was snatched from her neck.

"We'll be putting this back where it belongs," the mercenary nin growled menacingly.

Another nin grabbed Deidara's arm. "And you two will be coming with us to see the boss."

As Sakura stumbled off the desk, hopefully convincingly, she was shoved towards Deidara.

"Get your filthy hands off her. I'm going to report your behavior to your boss. Are you really supposed to manhandle your guests?" Deidara snapped, sounding just like a spoilt brat used to getting his own way.

The nin sneered. "The boss hired me to keep people like you off the jewels."

"Does it look like I can't _afford_ to buy ten of those diamonds?" he retorted indignantly.

"You explain that to the boss then," the nin told him impatiently.

As Deidara continued to complain, they left the hallway and entered the main hall, which was now empty. She kept her eyes lowered, acting timid while she suppressed the urge to laugh at Deidara's attempts to distract them. These nins were underestimating them, clearly convinced that they were civilians. Her wrists were being held between two nins while Deidara's arms were twisted behind his back. Breaking their hold was a simple matter.

They bypassed the auction room where everyone else was currently crowded, and then out the ornate door to the lobby area. Sakura could tell that these nins were about to drag them up the stairs to their boss. But they would not get the chance. Not if she could help it.

"NOW!"

In a flash, Sakura ripped off the chakra tag, dropped to the floor and swept her chakra enhanced leg out to knock two nins off their feet. Deidara's elbow collided with his captor's nose, drawing out a strangled curse, and then the blond smashed his fist into the other.

They sped for the exit door, throwing it open.

And ducked a volley of kunai.

"Shit!" Deidara cursed.

Sakura substituted herself to avoid a particularly dense cluster of projectiles. When she reappeared, she could see that Deidara had thrown away his gloves and was furiously kneading.

"Once I do this, we won't have enough clay for the bird until we get outside of the gates, yeah."

"We'll run for it."

And then he released his technique.

A moment later, hundreds of mini explosions spread out from where they stood up to the end of the compound. The guards who were unlucky enough to be close to them were thrown sideways. Escape path now visible, they ran for the perimeter wall.

When they were halfway there, yells sounded behind them.

Sakura glanced over her shoulder to find eight shinobi coming after them. "You go on!" she urged Deidara. "Better have the bird ready when I get out of those gates. They won't be down for long."

"And _this_ is why I always say; Kill them all!" Deidara shot at her, visibly irritated. "Running away from these low-level nins is just shameful, yeah!"

"And I keep telling you that we can't just kill them! They're just doing their jobs," she tossed back.

Deidara groaned in defeat, drawing a grin from her. Skidding to a halt and turning around, she formed a series of seals to release a wind jutsu before she brought her hands to her lips.

"_Fuuton: Fujin-no-jutsu!" _

A gust of wind picked up the dust from the ground and exploded forward, causing some of her pursuers to stumble, but the more skilled nins managed to leap upwards to safety. Once free from threat, they kept on charging forward on glowing chakra-powered steps.

Lips tightening in annoyance, Sakura directed chakra to her foot and proceeded to stomp on the ground. At the moment of impact, large lumps of broke ground shot upwards, the explosions radiating outwards until it finally reached the second wave of enemy nins. Their attempts to avoid the projectiles were futile, and they were eventually knocked to the ground.

Hopefully they would stay down, Sakura thought as she spun around again and sped towards Deidara. Otherwise they might piss Deidara off enough that he ignored her wishes and blew up everything to death.

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It was her.

If he had not been certain before, he was definitely convinced now. The battle within the compound walls had been punctuated with exploding earth and gusts of wind, the mainstays of Sakura's battle-skills. He knew very well what she was capable of, for she had had her practical ANBU training with his squad years ago. He had also been one of the ANBU opponents present during one of her battle-scenario ANBU test when she had finished her training. What he had seen back then convinced him that she would be an asset to any team, but only on missions which did not required too much stealth. Her techniques were inappropriate for those.

Not many nins could create so much chaos with so little effort, bar her blond partner perhaps. He had just gone over the perimeter wall a few minutes ago, but Itachi did not bother to follow. He was only interested in the female half of this partnership. Still, he could not help but wonder who the male nin was and how they had ended up with each other. He would do well to seek the answer to that question before approaching her.

At the moment, she was fighting against eight nins, four of which were chuunin level and the rest on par with a typical jounin, while her partner escaped. Her opponents were not faring well against her. In minutes, they were all disabled.

Hidden in the trees, Itachi followed her swift movement as she leapt over the high wall surrounding the compound. Even with his Sharingan activated, he could not make out her features under the hooded wrap. Oddly enough, he did not see the expected flash of pink. He even had to rule out a henge because he could not detect the chakra pattern associated with such a transformation.

He frowned thoughtfully. It _must_ be her. One's individual chakra signature was almost impossible to fake. He had never heard of a single successful occurrence of such a thing in his entire career.

Stealthily, he trailed after his target while he kept his own presence expertly masked. He slipped over the perimeter wall just in time to see her dark figure climb behind her partner. His lips tightened in displeasure as he watched the white clay bird soar up into the sky with its two passengers. However, this time he would be able to track them with relative ease.

If the male nin was careless enough to leave his clay pouch unsecured outside the compound, then he was asking for it to be tampered with.

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Deidara glanced over his shoulder at the silent kunoichi seated behind him on his bird. At the sight of her terse expression, he turned back to the front. They were heading northward after delivering the client's precious diamond for the fee that would feed them a couple of weeks at least. Idly, he wondered why the bastard didn't just buy the thing if he had the money to spare. It would have saved everyone a lot of grief.

Sakura was mostly silent since the escape. The silence was unnerving him, but he had no clue what to say. Still, it did not take a genius to guess what was on her mind because it was on his too.

His idea for the diversion was pretty much a standard move utilized by many nins in a similar position. He had expected her to be pissed off and uncomfortable with it, the way she had been during one of the missions they had taken a month or so after they had met. Until now, he did not understand why she had taken that one job back then. He would never have signed up for it, but the opportunity to rile her during the mission had been too good to pass up.

The client was a neglected, sad woman who was trying to divorce her cheating husband, but had never been able to prove it. The husband was influential enough to dismiss any photographic evidence that proved his infidelity by saying that all pictures could be doctored. So the wife had hired them to 'pretend' to be the unfaithful husband and the mistress. After sedating the husband and mistress, they had made sure that they were 'caught' outside the hallways of an exclusive hotel frequented by many powerful civilians.

Deidara could still remember the stiffness of her entire body as he pressed his lips to hers. She was rigid and unresponsive, and in turn, had made him feel like a damned lecher. He had never had to force himself on any woman, but that kiss came close to what he thought what that might feel like. Afterwards, he had pissed her off even worse when he told her that it was the worst kiss he'd ever had. He had been speaking nasally for a week afterwards from his broken nose.

What happened last night was NOTHING like it.

He dragged a hand down his face and sighed heavily, trying to wipe out the disturbing memories. It did not matter that for some reason, he had avoided kissing her lips. Trailing along her neck and jawline with his mouth was enough to send his blood roaring from his brain down to his shaft. The slight tang of saltiness against his tongue and the delectable smoothness of her skin had gone to his head like nothing he had ever felt before. He had thought that at one point, he would lose all control and go further. In enemy territory, for fuck's sake! There was something about the combination of her heat and scent plus the way her breath quickened that turned what was supposed to be a simple diversion to something that he really did not want to think about.

It had shaken him badly enough that he just wanted to forget about that shit. But forgetting was impossible as long as Sakura was behaving like this. This strain between them was unfamiliar and he did not want to put up with it for a second longer.

Determined to put an end to this and return to their usual interactions, he guided the bird downwards to the grassy area surrounded by a circular outcrop of rocks. They were just south of Earth Country now, which meant that they probably should stop anyway and head east soon. Being this close to Iwa was just plain crazy.

"What are we doing here?" Sakura asked as they landed. Without looking at him, she leapt off the bird.

He did not answer, but she did not press further. As he deconstructed the clay bird, he kept glancing at her to find her pacing restlessly up and down the grassy space. Yeah, something really needed to be done about this. This tension between them was beyond unbearable.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he stepped right into her path, forcing her to look up.

She scowled at him. "What?"

"You really have to ask?" He glared down at her. "What's with the silence, hm?"

The furrow between her brows deepened as her lips tightened. A beat passed, and then two, before she replied stiffly, "I have things to think about."

Her evasion riled him. "Well, the silence is really hacking me off, yeah. This is not how we work. So why don't you just come out and say what's really on your mind, hm?"

"It's none of your business," she insisted stonily. "So shut it and leave me alone."

She was about to bypass him when he flung out an arm to block her. She jumped like a startled rabbit, backpedalling to avoid the collision with his arm. His jaw tightened. On a normal day, she would have just swatted him away. This was almost like she did not dare to allow any physical contact between them.

"What the hell is your problem?" she snarled irritably.

"Right now, YOU are my problem," he shot back as loudly.

Her temples throbbed visibly. "Go deal with it yourself!"

"I'm trying to. But you're avoiding things, pretending that this has nothing to do with you." He jabbed an arm in the direction of Wind Country, deciding to go straight for the kill. "That little making out session got you all hot and bothered, didn't it? Admit it!"

She blanched, and then immediately stiffened defensively. Her tone was clipped when she said, "That's quite presumptuous of you, don't you think? What makes you think I'm thinking about it?"

"Are you listening to yourself?" he burst out. This was unbelievable. "I'm not going to pretend the problem is not there. So why don't you stop lying and meet the issue head on?" he challenged.

She sucked in a sharp breath as her expression clouded oddly. He could almost swear that at that very moment, she was thinking of something else. But the thought disappeared quickly when she countered flatly, "Why can't you just let it be?"

Goaded beyond belief, he shouted, "Because that stupid kiss is all I can think of, damn it!"

Her eyes widened, and then she jerked her gaze away. It occurred to him then that maybe he shouldn't have said it so bluntly. But what the hell? Things could not get more awkward than this, could they?

"That did not come out right, yeah," he muttered. "I mean, that kiss is making things uncomfortable."

"I know."

Silence descended between them once again, heavy and suffocating as they stood just at arm's length facing each other. Even though her gaze was fixed some distance to his right, the flickering of those brown orbs betrayed her troubled thoughts. Whatever she chose to say, he was sure that she was just as freaked as he was with this latest shift in their dynamics.

Eventually, Deidara let out a heavy puff of air, dragging a hand through his already messy hair as he stared at the ground. Both of them were on edge. They were both adults and it was not as if they had slept together. It was a measly kiss, for crying out loud. They had no choice but to just face it and deal with it and move on. Otherwise, they might be better off splitting up. There was no way he wanted to feel this pressure weighing down on him for however longer this partnership between them would last.

"Deidara."

His eyes jerked up to find her staring at him uncertainly.

"Look…" She paused, taking a deep breath before continuing wearily, "You're right."

He blinked in surprise. "I am?" And then he straightened. "Of course I am!" About what, though?

She rolled her eyes at him, but she was still clearly unsettled as she lowered those lids once more. Her tone was uncharacteristically subdued when she said, "I didn't really expect it to happen… like that. I thought it would be more like that time on the other mission. This time it's… different." She fixed her pleading gaze on him then. "I know we bicker a lot. But we're _partners_, Deidara. _That _shouldn't have happened."

He rubbed the back of his neck, knowing exactly what she was trying to say. Hell, he felt the same way. They worked well together, and neither of them wanted or needed this sort of complication in their partnership. They risked the end of what they knew if there was such a large shift in the dynamics.

So what now?

000

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This was painful.

Whenever they disagreed or if there was something bugging either of them in the past, they simply confronted it. Granted, the way they resolved things was usually loud and destructive, but it worked. They got things off their chests and moved on swiftly.

This was new. They could not physically beat this problem into submission. Something told her that it would be difficult to move past this one as easily. It was too personal. So personal that she did not even want to broach the subject until Deidara had started to yell at her for pretending nothing was wrong.

And she thought she was _through_ pretending. She had spent more than a year of her life doing nothing but pretending and she knew from experience just how soul-draining it was. Her relationship with Deidara had never been about pretending, no matter how bad things had gotten, and now was not the time to start. Deidara was right, they had to face this problem and get rid of it.

Deidara's huff drew her attention and she studied his disgruntled features. He clearly liked this confrontation as much as she did.

Finally, he shrugged. "We're probably just making a big deal out of it. It shouldn't have surprised us, really."

Her eyes narrowed slightly in confusion. "Why?"

He snorted. "You're what? Twenty? Twenty-one? And I'm twenty-four. We've been stuck with each other for the past year. When was the last time you got laid, hm?" She felt her cheeks flush hotly, causing him to smirk before he continued, "I know _I _haven't had any in the last one year. Probably time to do something about that. There comes a time when the hand is not quite enou-"

"Deidara!" she cut in harshly. She really did not want to know, or picture, how he dealt with it. "I don't want to know the details!"

As he grinned unrepentantly at her, she felt the earlier tension melt away. Until he said, "Guess I will be taking care of things once we reach the next town, hm?"

Sakura really hoped that the awful stab of irritation she felt at his words did not mean that she was jealous of what he was planning to do. Even if it did, it probably meant nothing. She had always been possessive of the men close to her. Most females were, weren't they?.

So, tamping down on her temper, she said, "You do what you need to do."

"Great." He tapped his lips thoughtfully. "Let's carry on over the border to Earth Country then. We'll stay the night in the first town we find."

She nodded in agreement, though she now felt like putting a fist through his face. It was best that she did not think too much about this reaction of hers because she had a feeling that it might lead to somewhere she was not willing to go yet.

000

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews for Chapter 3. I know some of you are impatient for the ItaSaku… but I did say that it was going to be DeiSaku and ItaSaku. Hopefully that's not too hard to swallow! :P Also, this is quite a long story, so there's still plenty of time for ItaSaku to happen. All that said, please enjoy this chapter.

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><p><strong><span>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 4<span>**

**(Beta: littleredcoat) **

Deidara was on the rooftop of the tallest building in the village, which was only a measly three stories. His back rested against the cold tiles as he stared up into the sky. They were close enough to Iwa for him to recognize the familiarity in the constellations. He used to do this a lot back then as well.

It was dawn already and he should get back to the inn to get some rest before they were ready to leave. Or perhaps they should hang about here for a day or two. He was not certain that it was a good idea for him to be close to Sakura right now.

Despite his confident words yesterday, he knew that they had a problem.

This was confirmed when he had left her in the inn yesterday evening with the full intention of seducing someone in the village bar. He had made it to the bar and downed a jar of sake before making a beeline for the most obvious single girl in the place. She was a buxom redhead, just his type because he always liked to feel the voluptuous softness of a woman's curves against him. It had taken him less than ten minutes to determine that this woman would be than willing to let him do whatever he wanted to her curves.

He had even gotten as far as pushing her up against the door inside an empty office at the back of the bar, their hips grinding desperately against each other as he licked up her neck. But the overtly sweet scent of her perfume and her supposedly-sexy mewls had irritated him. Especially when he had realized that her scent would be all over him and he would have no way to clean it off himself before returning to the inn. Which meant that Sakura would be able to smell this woman on him.

And somehow, that was a serious turn off. A

He had abandoned the woman then, leaving her staring at him in bewilderment. As he left the bar to take to the rooftops, he had cursed himself for his stupidity. Because with his hunger unsatisfied, he was even more strung up now. It would be stupid for him to return to the inn in that state. If Sakura had not gone out to do the same thing as he had intended to do, then both of them would be in trouble, cooped up in the tiny room like that. So he had finally decided to stay out here until he calmed down. But the entire night had passed, and he should really get off this roof and return.

With a groan, he sat up and cricked his neck before leaping down to the ground, shocking two elderly civilians. Ignoring them, he made his way back.

The sound of hammering and saws dragging through timber grated against his already irritated nerves as he arrived at the inn. There was a construction site directly opposite, and it looked like they had started work at the break of dawn. With all that racket, Sakura was probably awake.

When he reached their room, he unlocked the door and went in. Closing the door behind him, he was struck by the emptiness. He could not sense her, or rather his clay. He had never been able to sense her chakra signature because she was so good at keeping it at a dormant level when not in use. So one day almost a year ago, he had decided to smear a bit of his clay on the inside of her medic pouch. This allowed him to sense and locate her.

Anxiety spiked through him at the thought that she might have run off, until he saw her pack beside his between the window and one of the twin beds. She must be out buying breakfast or something, he surmised. Going to the window, he expanded his senses and had to suppress his sigh of relief when he pinpointed his familiar clay signature about half a mile away, still well within the village perimeter. It was static, which suggested that she was probably in a shop or something.

Well, he might as well clean up. Then he could catch a nap until she returned, if he managed to nod off with that racket going on outside. He could barely hear himself think.

That decided, he stripped and headed for the bathroom. Opening the door, he stepped in and immediately froze at the sight that greeted him.

A horrified Sakura was staring at him from the bathtub. Even though he knew that he would suffer untold pain for it, his eyes dropped to her breasts, fully exposed to his view in the now-bubbleless water. Something seemed to short in his brain as blood travelled southwards when he saw the pebbled pink nipples crowning the tips of small but perfectly rounded breasts.

"This can't be fucking happening," he hissed, disbelief and frustration shooting through him.

With his words, all hell broke loose.

000

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Itachi wondered how long he could get away with this detour before Leaf hunternins were dispatched to find him. He was supposed to be back in Konoha by now. Instead he was sitting in an inn close to the southern border of Earth Country, having tracked the male nin's clay pouch. He supposed he could always send a message informing the Hokage of his location, but that would mean that he had to explain his actions. At this moment, he did not know if he wanted to tell the Hokage anything just yet.

Leaning back against the wall separating the rooms, he stared at the hanging scroll decorating the wall, but paid no attention to the kanji upon it. His attention was fixed to the room next door. The dormant chakra was there throughout the night. Whilst her partner had left last evening soon after they had arrived, she had only made a short trip out at dawn this morning, returning swiftly with some new purchases. Before she had returned, however, he managed to disable her security jutsu, enabling him to enter the room to plant a listening bug.

Itachi loathed to admit that he was relieved when her partner stayed away the entire night, having only returned a short while ago. If their room was anything like his, it only had one bed and nothing else, not even a chair. He had been on enough missions to know that partners seldom forgo comfort after a long day of travel, which meant that most teammates did not think twice about sharing a bed. Despite this common practice, he found it difficult to stomach the notion of Sakura sharing a bed with her partner.

A sharp shriek vibrated through the wall suddenly, and Itachi tensed warily. The urge to jump to his feet and go next door was strong, but he was never the type to act rashly. He would wait and see. Telling himself to be patient, he continued to monitor the situation.

There were loud footsteps, and then some thumps of limbs hitting flesh which suggested that someone was being hit.

"_What are you doing in here? Get out!"_

"_YOU get out of the bathroom. You're done with the bathtub, anyway." _

At the realization of what was taking place next door, Itachi's Sharingan flared active and he had to snap his eyes shut in reflex. Slowly, he unclenched his fists and continued to listen while he deliberated if he should break things up between them. But what good would that do? Such a move would bring him no explanation as to why Sakura was travelling with this male nin. What he needed now was some solid information, something which he doubted Sakura would provide should he confront her directly.

"_I'm not done with the bath. At least, I wasn't! You could've knocked!" _

"_Sheesh! I didn't know you were inside, alright! Now go away."_

"_Don't change the subject! What sort of excuse is that? You don't barge into the bathroom without knocking! That's the rule because you know the bathroom doors don't usually have locks, damn it!" _

"_You're overreacting. It's not as if it's anything I've never seen before, yeah." _

"_Argh! You're irritating. Move out of the way. I'm getting out of here. DON'T look at me like that!"_

"_Like what, hm? I'm a red-blooded man and you've just wrapped yourself up in a towel so small I don't see why you even bother. Might as well just dance naked out of the door." _

Annoyance made Itachi frown. Being male did not mean that he could not avert his eyes when the occasion called for it, surely. The male nin was being deliberately irksome.

"_Busy night last night, I see. You SMELL like a whorehouse. Shouldn't that be enough? You still have to ogle me?" _

"_Ah, for fuck's sake! I banged the female half of the village, yeah. Is that what you want to hear? And what did I say about you going out and getting yourself laid last night, hm? You didn't, did you? Would be less uptight right now if you did that and took care of that stick up your ass, yeah." _

An indignant shriek preceded a loud crack, followed by a loud male roar of outrage, oddly tinged with a hint of frustration. Itachi's lips thinned. He felt like punching her partner himself.

"_Why the hell did you throw me against the wall? You're going to pay for that when I get out, yeah."_

"_Just try it." _

More thumps sounded, and then there was some muffled sloshing. Itachi's jaw ticked. From what he could tell, they were both still in the bathroom. Was the man actually taking a bath right there in front of Sakura? Naked? Just _how close_ were they?

"_Fuck! It's cold. How could you stay in this water?"_

"_It'll cool you down just nicely." _

Itachi inhaled deeply as he pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose, and attempted think rationally past his unpleasant reaction to the situation to read the nuances of their conversation. He could tell from their interaction that they were close. Fortunately, from the girl's reaction, it did not seem as if it had progressed further into a more personal territory. It would be… problematic, if it had done so.

"_Tch! You're making a big deal out of nothing. Now get out, because if I don't get to look at your tits and ass today, you don't get to look at my body either." _

A sputtered sound escaped her as Itachi frowned at the nin's coarseness. Then there was a loud slam which shook even the wall he was leaning on. Idly, he wondered if the inn's manager would come tell them off for the commotion. But then again, no one was likely to hear anything over the grinding and banging sounds of construction next door. It was so intrusive that he would have heard nothing of their conversation if not for the presence of his bug inside their room.

For the next half an hour, Itachi heard only the sound of water splashing intermittently and the subtle sound of pacing feet. There were the occasional mutters as well, but it was too indistinct for him to make out the words.

Then he heard the male nin curse under his breath and the sound of draining water. A door creaked open.

"_Sakura. Can you pass my pack?"_

Itachi sucked in a sharp breath. This was the first time either of them was addressed by their name. And the confirmation of her identity only made the constriction in his chest heavier. If she knew her name, did it mean that she was conscious that she had left the village without leave? It had occurred to him that perhaps she suffered amnesia or something similar, but the likelihood of such a thing was growing slimmer with each revelation.

"_Get your pack yourself."_

"_I'll have to walk out there naked, yeah. You took the only towel that was in here. But then again, you probably just want to look, so-"_

"_Argh!" _

Another thump sounded. Something soft hitting a body, perhaps.

"_Oi! That hurts! Don't throw my things at me, yeah."_

"_You deserve it."_

There were some rustling sounds and some more thumps.

"_Can you hurry up and get dressed?"_

"_I'm done, yeah!"_

"_About time!"_

"_What has gotten you in this mood, yeah? This is not because of what we talked about yesterday, is it?" _

"_Just shut up, alright. I really don't want to go through anything that has happened between that mission and this moment right now!" _

"_Tch! Sakura. This is stupid, yeah. I really don't know why you're so pissed off and why we are arguing like this. A week ago, if I'd walked in on you like this, you'd have kicked me in the balls and laughed while I died of pain."_ A long pause followed before a loud sigh sounded. _"Look. I'm sorry, yeah. For whatever."_

A long moment passed before Itachi heard anything again.

"_It's okay. I'm just…" _A heavy sigh sounded.

"_Just say whatever you need to say. That's how we've always worked, yeah. When you clam up, we end up getting pissed with no way out. Like now." _

"_I… I know, alright!" _A huff followed._ "If you dare make fun of me, I'll KILL you." _

"_It can't be that bad, yeah. So what's eating you?" _

Another silence filled the air.

"_So?"  
><em>

"_Fine, fine. I… don't like idea of you… doing what you were doing last night." _

"_Oh." _

"_So, there you have it. If you laugh, I'll rip out your intestines and make you eat them!" _

"_I'm not laughing."_

"_Oh."_

"_I didn't sleep with anyone last night."_

"_You… Oh. Why?" _

"_Didn't feel like it." _

"_Oh." _

Itachi's skin prickled in alarm at the awkward but meaningful exchange, not missing the male nin's deepening tone. Tension seemed to be rising next door, and not in a good way. Further inside him, a rare sensation of fury was rapidly growing. Perhaps nothing had happened between them on a personal front before, but it was increasingly clear that something would if no one put a stop to it.

Mind made up, Itachi strapped on his belongings and left quietly. A moment later, he was outside their room door. It occurred to him that he could perhaps handle this situation with more finesse, but if he left them to their own devices for much longer, the outcome was not something that could be reversed.

So, without another thought, he kicked the door open.

The occupants within froze with their eyes fixed on him.

At first glance, both of them looked unfamiliar. The man was a blue-eyed blond, with a long ponytail high at the back of his head. His ninja mesh shirt, sandal and slashed hitai-ate proclaimed him as an Iwa missing nin. He was holding a pack tightly in his hand.

The gasping girl standing slightly behind him was slender with damp shoulder-length black hair falling over her brows to frame a pair of brown eyes and pale face. She was wearing a non-descript ninja mesh shirt and pants, similar to the man. There was no hitai-ate anywhere on her, but her wary stance clearly advertised her ninja status.

Even with the disguise, he could tell that she was Sakura. The disguise also proved to him that she definitely did not want to be recognized as who she was, and that was a clear declaration of disloyalty. And the Iwa nukenin? What role did he play in her disappearance from Konoha? There were so many unanswered questions hounding him.

He took a step forward, and then stilled when she took two steps back. "Don't move," he warned. It would not do for her to run. Such a thing would only compound the problems they were currently facing.

Eyes not leaving his, she grabbed the blond's sleeve and hissed, "Run."

A moment later, she and the blond nin were leaping out through the window.

000

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Sakura's heartbeat thundered in her ears.

The second her feet hit the ground, she sped away next to Deidara, quickly forming the seals for a transportation jutsu. She felt Itachi's chakra rise, telling her that he was definitely taking some action. If he started to give chase, she would never be able to outrun him. At the moment, the only advantage she had was surprise.

"He's an ANBU captain and a genjutsu master. So don't fight him. Don't even _LOOK_ at him or you'll be caught. His techniques can't be dispelled. Ever! Just get away!"

"But-"

"I'm _serious,_ Deidara!"

Her transportation jutsu took hold with a burst of smoke and she felt herself sucked into some void before being deposited out at the edge of the village. It was not as far as she would have liked to go, but it did put some distance between her and Itachi. Unfortunately, she was never very good at this technique, as it required a large amount of chakra all at once. It was something someone like Naruto excelled at.

Bringing her hands together, she executed the technique again, and found herself in a desolate-looking valley some distance away from the village. Rock outcrops peppered the area, giving her plenty of hiding places but the jagged ground meant that she would require her chakra to run if Itachi was to give chase. After two transportation jutsu, around twenty percent of her chakra was gone, so it meant that she would have to be careful what she used it for.

Biting her lips, she began to pick her way through the rocky area. She was unfamiliar with this part of Earth Country, something which was a bit of a problem because she did not really know what she was doing.

Crows cawed over her head, drawing a curse from her lips. Itachi had found her, but was that truly so surprising? He was an ANBU captain at thirteen, for goodness's sakes. She was way below him in terms of skill level. The only thing that would give her a chance was to use summons, but that carried another level of exposure. Tsunade would definitely find out when she next summoned Katsuyu. Then she would be forced to explain what the hell she was thinking of when she had disappeared like that.

Directing chakra to her feet, she began to leap from the tip of one jagged rock to the other, speeding up as she got used to the sensation. It was different from tree-jumping, because instead of a whole branch, she only had the tip of the rock to balance on. Each leap brought her to land precariously on another tip.

By the tenth leap or so, a cloud of smoke puffed out not far in front of her, shocking her to a standstill. Her heart was thundering hard in panic when she realized that there was no avoiding this confrontation.

Then the smoke cleared to reveal Itachi. He looked no different from the last time she had seen him in Konoha a little more than a year ago. Still as stoic. Still as expressionless. It was almost as if nothing fazed him. Like seeing her after all this time did not affect him in any way.

Conversely, the sight of him standing so close to her made blood roar in her ears and sent her heart rate soaring. Her eyes drank him in while her emotions tumbled between the extremes of panic, anger and curiosity. Two of those emotions were inappropriate, so she willed herself to focus on the anger.

"Why are you running, Sakura?" he asked, his mild tone betraying nothing.

She clenched and unclenched her fists, wracking her brain to think of a way to get out of this predicament. The truth would not do, of course.

So she demanded instead, "Let me pass."

His brows furrowed slightly. "It'd never occurred to me that you'd do this. That you'd fake your own death and leave Konoha to live the life of a missing nin."

Her lips compressed into a thin line.

"What is your purpose out here?" he asked. "Why not return to Konoha?"

The anger she had been focusing on flared hotter than before. "You have some nerve, asking that question. Are you sure you have no idea why I prefer not to be in Konoha?"

It was slight, but the stillness of his black orbs wavered. However, his voice betrayed nothing when he said, "You need to return to Konoha. It is best that you do so voluntarily."

She shook her head vehemently. "I'm not going to go back."

His eyes flashed in irritation. "Then you leave me no choice but to return you forcibly."

Shit! "You think I'm going to just let you drag me back? I'll fight you!" she declared.

Oh, Kami-sama… Foolish, foolish Sakura, who had no chance against someone like Itachi, she scolded herself as she tried not to panic. It was not even his Sharingan that was the biggest problem, because she had trained and trained for months to fight blind when Tsunade had tipped her off that there would be an Uchiha as part of the enemy team. It was that Itachi's _other_ skills were perfect as well.

"Very well, then, Sakura."

His stance shifted.

She hissed out loud. This was it. The moment she had feared for the past year when she disobeyed direct orders and disappeared. But she managed to clamp down on her panic and bring forth her training. In a fraction of a second, the panic was replaced with calm calculation and she brought her hands up.

"_Fuuton: Fujin-no-jutsu!" _

The wind picked up around her and gathered force before shooting forward at Itachi. As she'd expected, he easily brought up a wall of water to shield himself. But as she did so, she formed a clone and stepped back. Her clone rushed forward with another wind jutsu, following swiftly with a barrage of kunai. He deflected them with his katana until one nicked his shoulder.

And he exploded into nothing.

Damn it, that was just his clone, Sakura thought just a second before she felt his presence looming behind her.

"Very careless, Sakura," he drawled.

She reacted by stomping on the ground, destabilizing the earth beneath his feet. As the ground rumbled and tossed, Itachi leapt up into the trees and then brought his hands together in a series of seals so fast that she could not discern anything but the fact that it was a water jutsu.

Ropes of water shot towards her and her eyes widened in alarm. Cursing under her breath, she called forth an earth wall barrier. Itachi's jutsu crashed into her wall and sent it crumbling to the ground in a pile of mud.

Before she could attack, there was a blur and she found herself knocked onto her back. To her alarm, Itachi was straddling her, one hand curled around her neck with an uncomfortable pressure while his eyes swirled red with his bloodline limit. Any second now, she would be caught in one of his infamous genjutsu. Adrenaline coursing through her, she let loose a chakra-enhanced punch only to have her fist slammed sideways onto the ground. She winced at the shock of pain running up her arm. His other hand left her neck to restrain her other wrist, stopping her from using her monstrous strength.

Their eyes met and her breath caught. He was studying her, as if searching for something in her face. There was something odd going on here. Something was distracting him.

And she remembered then how things had been left when they had last met face to face. Was he thinking about it? Because she was beginning to remember all those things she had squashed down and buried deep in her mind. No, what was she thinking? This was Uchiha Itachi, the ultimate example of the perfect shinobi who carried out his duties without any emotional entanglement. Of course he would not be thinking about the past the way she was so afraid to. He probably thought her disappearance from the clan was something to be rectified so that honor could be restored. But it was too late for that, surely. Things had gone too far down the wrong road.

She should really learn to be as emotionless as he was.

"Let's just talk about this, alright?" she told him quietly. "There's no need for us to fight."

His onyx eyes went to hers and then stopped there, still assessing her with that eerie, unreadable expression of his. She forced herself to relax, to show him that she was no longer fighting. It was important that he was fooled into believing her.

"Hn."

In the very moment she felt him loosen his hold on her, she twisted the right wrist he was holding and drove a pulse of chakra into his hand, instantly paralyzing the nerves. He hissed, launching back and away from her as she jumped to her feet and backed away. Her heart thundered in her chest as she waited warily for his response to her action.

"There was no need for that," he told her stonily, letting his injured left hand dangle limply by his side.

Her anger flashed. "There's every need. And more."

He seemed surprised by her words. Not that it was unexpected. Before she'd left Konoha, she wouldn't dream of speaking to him in such a manner. Well, it was about time he found out that she was not that little obedient kunoichi anymore.

"Come back to Konoha," he said.

Sometimes, she was sorely tempted to. Only to remember what it had been like just before she left. So she smirked at him. "Why? So I can continue to be the obedient Uchiha wife? Because I was so happy living like that?"

Something in his eyes flickered, but before he could say anything, she felt a spike of chakra heading their way. Her eyes narrowed in irritation. That fool…

"INCOMING!"

Stunned, Sakura glanced up only to shriek in horror as a white dome swooped down at her. What the hell was Deidara doing? Trying to kill her? She tensed to run.

"Don't fucking move, yeah!"

There was a crash all around her and then she was encased in darkness. On the other side of this clay dome, she could hear the thundering sounds of explosives going off one after another. She could feel the ground vibrating under her feet with each blow. The forces buffeting the dome were enormous, which meant that Deidara was going all out.

And probably enjoying the hell out of it.

Without warning, the white dome suddenly collapsed, wrapping around her like an oversized blanket, even closing up under her feet. Something had gone wrong with Deidara's clay. She would be suffocated.

"Deidara!" she screamed just as the clay stopped an inch from her face, and the whole thing began to fly upwards, carrying her with it.

She could not see anything except darkness and it was beginning to really unnerve her, especially when she felt random jerks and bumps which meant that she was moving somewhere. Her rapidly hammering heart was telling her that she was about to descend into panic.

Time seemed to stretch as she continued to be jostled about within the enclosure.

Was Itachi giving chase?

She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that Deidara was causing this mass of clay around her to move and not Itachi. Going back to Konoha at this point was not an option.

000

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Deidara smirked as he sat hovering on his clay bird. He had an eye shut, while the other was watching the Konoha ANBU standing opposite the clearing through his scope. The clay construct carrying Sakura was swiftly moving away from them, and he had every intention of making sure that it went far enough to avoid her being captured by Konoha. It would carry on moving until it either reached one of his old hide-outs in Earth, or he fell unconscious.

He almost gave in to the temptation to study the ANBU's face as he stood watching the bird leave, only to remember Sakura's warning. So he kept his attention to one spot above the ANBU's shoulder.

"Who are you?" the ANBU asked mildly, finally breaking the silence.

Deidara tapped his slashed hitai-ate. "This should be enough to answer your question."

"Even traitors have names."

Irritation spiked. "Deidara, yeah. Check out the Bingo books."

"Deidara… You're the Tsuchikage's student."

Surprised, Deidara almost glanced at the ANBU's face, only managing to pull back in time. He almost fell for it, he thought angrily. But how the hell did this ANBU know about his relationship with Onoki? It was not something the Tsuchikage wanted to advertise, so not many outside Iwa knew about it. This information was definitely not in the Bingo books.

"Who told you about the old man being my teacher?" he probed bluntly.

"I overheard the information."

"What the fuck? You were spying on Iwa, weren't you? I hate people like you, yeah."

The Leaf ANBU did not answer. Instead, his head shifted in the direction where the clay construct had disappeared to. "You would prevent Sakura from returning to her village?" he inquired politely.

Deidara scowled. "Are you fucking kidding me? Why should I let you take her? It's not as if she wants to go back."

The ANBU's tone was tinged with something unreadable. "You're so certain she doesn't wish to return?"

What's with this bastard and the questions, yeah? "She left in the first place, didn't she? It's not as if anyone forced her to leave." Deidara retorted, incredulous. "Look. Let's quit the yapping and fight, yeah. I'm itching to blast you sky high."

"It's unnecessary for us to fight."

Deidara could not believe what he was hearing. This guy was ANBU, seriously? "So what do you suggest, hm?"

"I need information."

Deidara's eyes narrowed. "Don't think I'm a snitch just because I'm a nukenin, yeah. Find someone else to spill Iwa's dirty secrets, or do what you do best and spy on them."

"Not information of such a nature."

He was getting really sick of the passive attitude of that Leaf ANBU and the way he spoke. "Ah, for fuck's sake. Get to the point, already!"

"How long have you been with Sakura?"

Deidara's brows furrowed when he realized where this was going. Then he smirked. "Our entire life. We were born stuck at the hips. 'Kaa-chan took a kunai and split us up when we drove her nuts with all our bickering."

The ANBU's shoulder tensed, making Deidara smirk in satisfaction.

"Where did you meet?" the ANBU asked.

Deidara's brows furrowed when suspicion struck him that there was something oddly personal about the question the ANBU was asking. "What's with the questions? You knew Sakura before she left Konoha?"

"Every Konoha shinobi knows her," the ANBU replied mysteriously. "Has she not informed you of her identity?"

He shrugged. "Not important to me."

It really wasn't. Such things did not matter to him. Besides, it was all in the past. But the way the ANBU was referring to it suggested that Sakura might be someone important in the village. What did he care about it anyway? Who she was in the past had nothing to do with the Sakura he now knew. If she was so happy being who she was in Konoha, she would not have left, right?

"Who she was in Konoha means that Leaf will not allow her to wander freely as a nukenin," the ANBU told him. "She will be hunted down and caught. It's simply a matter of time. This is Konoha's business and none of your concern, so you need not interfere."

Deidara snorted. "She's currently my partner, so I'll be short of one useful medic nin if I let you take her, yeah. Konoha can have her back once I'm done with her." Something which looked increasingly unlikely as the days passed by, he admitted silently.

"There are many other available medic nins," the ANBU pointed out.

"Then find one and bring her back to Konoha with you," Deidara snapped. "Keep away from Sakura." Hell, he had sure sounded possessive there.

"So you refuse to cooperate?"

Deidara only snorted derisively.

The ANBU nodded. "Very well. Then I'll simply have to remove you from the equation."

That ANBU sure needed his face blown in, Deidara thought as he shot back, "You can try."

Eyes not leaving that spot above the ANBU's shoulder, Deidara stuck his hand in his clay pouch. The contents were meager, considering that he had used more than half to construct two giant birds. It meant that he would not be able to create the large scale art that he wanted to.

Then he stilled when he sensed something foreign in the clay at the bottom. It was slight, almost undetectable if not for the forbidden technique's mouth on his palm. The tongue licking the clay was shrinking back in disgust. Not fussy, yeah, he directed internally to the tongue.

His eyes widened in realization and then he cut a murderous look at the impassive ANBU. "Fuck! How long have you been trailing us?"

"A while."

The notion that this ANBU might have spied on their private moments sent a haze of rage crashing through his mind. He hated these sorts of people, the people who couldn't seem to leave others to live their lives without bother or restrictions.

"You're dying today, ANBU," he declared as he released his clay bombs. _"KATSU!"_

000

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Sakura did not know how long she had been moving. After a while, the monotony of it made her nod on and off. She only jerked fully awake when she felt a jarring impact, and the next thing she knew, the clay around her cracked and she fell out.

Sunlight blinded her after the darkness she had been encased in. Shielding her eyes, she stood up on wobbly legs and scanned the area around her. There was no one around her or the cracked clay and she was no longer in that rocky area near the border. From what she could tell, she was well within Earth Country now. She was surrounded by more rocks, but these were much higher and not so jagged. There was a fissure in the face of one of larger ones. It seemed to lead into some sort of cave.

Wait.

How did she get here?

Her gaze dropped to the shattered clay around her, only now noticing that some of the broken pieces might have once been shaped like wings. That dome must have turned into a bird and flew off with her within it.

So where was Deidara?

Worried, she began to run south, in the direction where she had come from. Fear jarred through her even though she tried not to think of what Itachi might do to Deidara. She had not seen the Uchiha since she'd left Konoha, but she had no doubt that his skills were as unchallenged as before. Worse, he was methodical and his strategies were efficient which meant that the hot-headed Deidara was at a disadvantage. Deidara usually acted well before thinking things through.

She expanded her senses in the attempt to sense him but it was futile. Chakra might be her specialty, but only when she wielded it herself. Sensing someone else's chakra especially at a great distance was not something she was skilled at.

But she knew someone with the ability to locate others. However, she needed to consider a couple of issues before she made any contact. Firstly, every contact increases the likelihood of discovery by Konoha. But now that Itachi had found her, it was a moot point. Secondly, making contact without prior arrangement meant that she might interrupt something crucial. The question was, does this situation dire enough for her to make that move?

Deidara might die.

So yes, the situation was as bad as it could get.

Closing her eyes, she exhaled loudly and concentrated her chakra. This was more difficult than the usual summoning and it was definitely not something either of them had done in the spur of the moment. But it could not be helped this time. It was an emergency.

When she attained the required level of chakra, she slammed her hands to the ground and called out, "Kuchiyose-no-jutsu!"

A large white cloud of smoke materialized out of thin air.

And when it cleared, a tall nin stood there, shaking his head to clear it. It took a moment before his blue eyes focused on her. A bright smile exploded over his face until he took in her grim expression, at which point a frown formed between his brows.

"What's wrong, Sakura-chan?"

000

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A/N: And that's it until the next chapter. Please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for your wonderful response for the previous chapter. Here's the next one. Enjoy!

**Warning: Only suitable for fans of ItaSaku AND DeiSaku. If you object to either of these couples, then you won't like this story. **

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><p><strong><span>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 5<span>**

**(Beta: littleredcoat)**

"What's wrong, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura rushed forward and hugged him briefly before stepping back.

"Thanks for coming. Am I interrupting something?"

Naruto waved a dismissive hand. "Nothing important. What's wrong?" he asked, clearly more concerned about her than whatever it was he had been doing when she contacted him. They had just caught up a while back and they were not planning on meeting up until roughly two weeks later. But it was typical of him to drop everything for his friends.

Going straight to the point, she said, "I need your help, Naruto."

His hands landed on her shoulders as his blue eyes searched her face. "What is it?"

"Deidara."

Naruto immediately scowled. So far, Naruto was the only who knew the whole story, but that was because in his Sage mode, he managed to track her down and confront her face to face when she had disappeared. Once she had explained her reasoning, he had sworn not to expose her. Still, he had never liked the idea of her traveling with Deidara and had made no secret about it.

She blurted out, "Itachi found me…"

Naruto's eyes widened in shock. "If he knows he'll tell Tsunade-"

"I know, I know. But I'll deal with that later. There's something else more important now. To cut the story short, we ran but Itachi caught up with me. I told Deidara to go but he came back for me and sent me away in one of his clay birds. He stayed behind to fight with Itachi and I have a feeling it's going to go badly. I need you to get me to him."

His brows furrowed in concern as he digested her words. "He doesn't stand a chance against Itachi."

"I know. That's why I need to find him," she said, growing increasingly desperate. "Soon. Before something terrible happens."

Naruto gave her a long look, and then nodded.

"Do you need a description, an item of his, or something else?" she asked, needing to do something useful.

He shook his head. "You didn't think I'd let you travel all over the place with that nukenin without memorizing his chakra, did you? Just wait while I find him."

Naruto closed his eyes and a moment later, slashes of orange framed his eyes as he entered Sage Mode. He stood so still that she did not even dare to breathe for the fear of disturbing him. If anyone could find Deidara, he could.

Then his eyes snapped open. "He's twenty miles south-west from here, near the border. He's not alone. And his chakra is jumping up and down like mad."

Her heart seemed to be lodged in her throat. "They are fighting."

Naruto nodded grimly. "Better go now."

"Thank you, Naruto-kun. I need to release you or I'll run out of chakra." And she needed all the chakra she could have if she was to help Deidara escape from Itachi. If such a thing was even possible.

He nodded and then smiled. "It's good to see you. Are we catching up as planned in two weeks?"

"I'm not sure. I'll contact you to arrange something when things settle down. I need to go now."

"If anyone can help him, you can. I believe in you, Sakura-chan!" he declared firmly. "But wait, I have something to give you. I've been carrying it around just in case we happen to see each other."

He reached into his pocket and brought something out. It was a necklace with a cherry-blossom pendant. There were some markings on the petals but they were so small and faint she could barely make it out. But still, this was not the time to admire jewelry, as nice as Naruto's gesture was.

Taking it and slipping the metal chain over her neck, she said, "Thanks."

"Early birthday present. Just don't take it off. I'll explain some other time, okay?" He smiled encouragingly at her. "Now, go."

With a final wave and a smile, she ended the summoning technique and watched as Naruto disappeared right before her eyes.

And then she followed Naruto's instruction and ran. The need to conserve chakra warred with the need to reach the injured Deidara but the former won. She could run on her own steam but without chakra, she would not be able to help Deidara.

000

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Itachi leapt to the side to land on a jagged outcrop of rock, neatly avoiding yet another explosive which he had learnt was the specialty of this Iwa nin. The battle was not an easy one, but neither was it the most difficult one he had participated in. The nukenin's abilities were mostly long-ranged and Itachi could admit that it was rare to encounter someone so skilled at aerial battle.

It had been a while since they had begun to fight and Itachi knew that it was about time to put a stop to it before he ran low on chakra. The question was, how should he proceed with this? He had no strategy in place to deal with this situation because he had not expected to reveal his presence so soon. But it had to be done to prevent Sakura from doing something she should not do.

"Stop fucking moving around, yeah!" came the furious yell from the airborne nin.

"Surely you do not expect me to remain in place to wait for your explosives to make contact," he responded mildly as he performed the seals for a water jutsu, as the usual fire jutsu was mostly ineffective against the Iwa nin's high level earth-based jutsu. "Suiton: Suigadan."

Highly pressurized water burst from the ragged ground and formed into drill shaped weapons. They shot high into the air, making a beeline for the clay bird. Unperturbed, the nukenin weaved and swerved midair, deftly avoiding the projectiles. Itachi continued to watch, biding his time until he saw his own clone emerging from behind one of the many sharp, projecting rock formations in this area.

Then he called out a technique he had 'learnt' from a Mist nin, "Suiton: Suiben."

A thin stream of water broke out from the ground and formed into a slender whip. Wielding it in his hand, Itachi snapped the long whip at the clay bird just as his clone commenced a doujutsu. He did not feel it now, but when his clone dissipated, he would feel his right eye burn with the strain of the technique. The backlash of this particular doujutsu ensured that he utilized it sparingly.

The moment Deidara moved to avoid the water whip, the clone released a controlled, small burst of Amaterasu before he dissolved into a cloud of smoke.

"What the hell!" hissed the Iwa nin as the black fire hit the bird and proceeded to devour a clay wing.

Itachi watched as the clay construct destabilized and then spiraled down at a great speed. His usual fire jutsu might be ineffective against the nukenin's earth jutsu, but Amaterasu was a different matter altogether, even one this small. It was a deadly jutsu Itachi used when the usual fire jutsu proved insufficient. This time, the measured amount of Amaterasu would serve the purpose of bringing the other nin down to the ground once the clay was decimated. Should Itachi choose to exert the full force of Amaterasu, Deidara might die and Itachi did not think that Sakura could forgive such a thing on top of everything else. As it was inevitable that Sakura would be forced to return to Konoha, the only question being _when_, it would not do to give her more reasons to be hostile. Much as it pained Itachi to admit it, he had a feeling that Sakura cared for the nukenin and her feelings were likely reciprocated. There was no other explanation for the Iwa nin's action in sending her away to take her place in the fight. In the harsh world of missing nins, shinobi usually took care only of their own interests.

A fraction of a moment before the clay bird crashed into the ground, Deidara leapt off. Itachi did not waste any time in speeding towards him. They met with a clash of kunai and katana.

"What the fuck was that black fire, yeah?" Deidara snapped angrily as he ducked out of the path of the katana.

"That was Amaterasu, the fire that will consume anything in its path."

Hissing, the other nin jumped back and let loose with a volley of shuriken. Itachi substituted himself out of harm's way and reappeared close to his opponent, who barely had time to remove his hands from his clay pouch to block a punch only to receive one in the stomach. They traded one hit after another and it soon became clear to Itachi that this style of combat was not one of Deidara's strengths.

"Your close-ranged skills are subpar," Itachi remarked as he spun around to deliver a kick.

The nuke nin's face went red as he avoided the kick. "What did you say? Fuck, yeah, who cares about close-ranged battle? See what you think of my C3! It will level a whole village, so let's see how you avoid this, yeah! "

Pushing his hands into his clay pouch, Deidara broke away from him. Moments later, he was ascending in another clay bird, one which was smaller than the one before. He must be running out of clay, Itachi deduced. The nukenin was far too dependent on his clay techniques.

Then something fell. Itachi's eyes narrowed as he took in the shape of the small clay statue. It seemed comparatively innocent, when the clay statue grew bigger on its way down, Itachi found himself growing more wary.

Senses prickling with warning, Itachi watched Deidara backing away swiftly, his action betraying the fact that this particular explosive was not to be taken lightly. Perhaps the blond was not exaggerating when he had said that this C3 could level a village, in which case this was something much worse than his previous explosives and Itachi had to either prevent it from exploding or distance himself from the blast. Deidara would have to move far enough so that he was not within the range of the explosion, therefore, as long as he was backing away, there was time.

"KATSU!"

Itachi's eyes widened in surprise. He'd expected the nukenin to go further. There was no time to wait. He immediately reacted and released his own technique, stifling a wince against the pressure at the back of both of his eyes. His vision swam but he continued to feed chakra to his technique.

The air surrounding him became pressurized and pulsed outwards just as the clay status detonated, releasing an enormous ball of fire which seemed to grow every second. Itachi flattened himself on the hard ground as the pressure from his technique pulsed and held the explosion away from him. The forces appeared to be equal, neither techniques gaining the upper hand.

And then suddenly, the nukenin's blast was pushed backwards.

"FUCK!"

Itachi glanced up in time to see the blast from the C3 closing in on a surprised Deidara and the clay bird. The glare from the explosion made it impossible for him the make out what was happening and the heat was almost unbearable, especially against his unprotected face and arms. If the fire made contact with the nukenin, he would certainly die.

And Sakura would have another thing to hold against him.

It was probably too late to do anything, but Itachi had to try. Jerking up, Itachi sped through a series of seals, knowing that this would be the last major technique he performed today. The pressure reversed and converged, shaping into a vortex.

And sucked the fiery explosion in.

As the last of the fire went into the vortex, his chakra level bottomed out and his technique dissipated. Slowly, Itachi turned to survey his surroundings, his vision returning to normal as he no longer had sufficient chakra to sustain the Sharingan. By the time the dust cleared, there was no sign of the other nin. The blast must have thrown the nukenin from the area before Itachi's vortex took hold. If he had not utilized the space-time jutsu to absorb the explosion, the bomb would have spread and destroyed everything around them. As it was, there was a large circle of crushed rocks in the new crater surrounding him.

Itachi did not know if the other nin was alive and in his current depleted state, it would be foolish to investigate. Much as he disliked doing so, he knew that he had to cut short this task and return to Konoha before he incurred the Hokage's wrath.

He thought of the tracking jutsu he had placed on the nukenin when they had engaged in a hand to hand battle earlier. Provided that Deidara was still alive, Itachi had no doubt that he would find it. He only hoped that the blond did not possess the skills to disable the technique completely. It would make it easier for him to locate the Iwa nin, and Sakura by extension, once he arranged for some personal time away from Konoha.

Tracking Deidara would definitely be easier than tracking Sakura. With her ability to control her chakra, it would be very difficult to find her unless he happened to be close by while she fought. He would not be able to distinguish her from any other civilian even if they were in the same village. Deidara was another matter. In the unlikely event that the tracking jutsu was successfully disabled, Itachi was still able to locate the Iwa nin from his chakra, which was just like the blond's personality; raw, loud and brash. So far, the Iwa nin had not bothered to shield his chakra or his presence.

Itachi knew that he would find Sakura again. He only needed to be patient.

000

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Sakura had never run so fast or so desperately in her life. The border was still so far away but she needed to stop for a while. Pausing briefly, she took another soldier pill and expanded her senses. Almost immediately, she jerked in surprise when she found a familiar chakra signature in a different direction, closer than what Naruto had said earlier. And unlike what Naruto had described, Deidara's chakra was weak, flickering and barely there. It was enough to panic her into motion again.

Locking in on his exact position, she sped up. A few long minutes later, she found him. He was slumped in a heap amidst fragments of clay, having clearly crashed to the ground. Both his body and the clay were severely blackened by burns.

"Oh, no…" she whispered in horror.

She sped to him, landing on her knees beside him moments later. Without pause, she swept her glowing hands over his broken and unconscious body. He was in a bad state. But the worst injury had to be the gaping hole in his entire chest that encompassed the top of his left arm as well, leaving the limb almost detached from the rest of his body.

"Oh, no, Deidara," she breathed out shakily.

She pushed healing chakra into the bloody mess that used to be his chest. The injury was so bad that she could not make out that mouth of his. She supposed she should be thankful that it was no longer bleeding due to the cauterizing effect of the burns. The first time she had healed his chest more than a year ago, the injury had been small enough that she managed to keep the large mouth, the result of the forbidden technique, intact. Now, she had no idea if there was anything left of it to regenerate. It was a wonder Deidara was even alive. The level of damage to his lungs was severe and it was only by luck that his heart was unaffected.

Time passed as she continued to work relentlessly, with sweat pouring down her face. She let it drip, unwilling to remove her hands even for a second to wipe them off. The mouth-shaped kinjutsu on his chest did not form in place of the new tissue growing there but that did not surprise her since she had no clue how to reinstate it. Deidara would have to redo it himself or learn to live without it. She was more concerned about keeping him alive since she'd nearly lost him twice when his heart had stalled briefly.

It was dark when she was finally satisfied that he was out of danger. Conscious that she should not drain herself completely while she was out here and vulnerable, she took her hands away. As weariness washed over her, she allowed herself to slump forward on trembling arms and brace herself over the pale Deidara. Waves of dizziness made her sway and she forcibly moved off before she could collapse on him. For a long while, she just stayed there as her heartbeat returned to a normal level.

A soft groan made her jump in surprise and turn quickly to her patient.

"Deidara?"

Unfocused blue eyes darted left and right, before settling unsteadily on her face. Then he frowned.

"Hey, don't cry, yeah."

She dashed a hand across her cheeks, surprised to find them wet with tears. "I'm not crying," she told him mulishly.

He smirked weakly, and then his eyes drifted shut.

"Deidara!"

His lids lifted slowly, and then his brows furrowed as if he just realized something. "Are we near the cave hideout?" he rasped.

She frowned, wondering what hideout he meant. "Your clay bird dropped me outside some cave, I think."

He nodded. "I-Inside the cave… Boar-dragon-boar-tiger-dragon-tiger… Lick palm and then press the seal on the wall… Entrance will appear."

"What?"

But he had fallen unconscious.

She had to get him someplace safe and the hideout sounded like the only viable option. The only problem was, it was too far away. But she did not have much of a choice, did she?

She reached into her medic pouch, took out yet another soldier pill and popped it in her mouth. These pills were her own fast acting formulation which meant that in less than a minute, she felt energy rushing through her. She reached back to move the pair of kodachi and her tanto out of the way before gritting her teeth and hoisting Deidara up on her back. His height made it awkward for her to carry him in this manner, but considering his injuries, she could not very well sling him over her shoulder.

Progress was steady albeit slow and it did not take long for her panic to fade enough for her to think how and why all of this had come about.

Itachi.

Seeing him after so long was like a wake-up call. It was almost like the life she had been leading recently was an idealistic dream, and she had just been jolted awake to face a reality that she was not willing to confront. Now, she knew that she would be forever looking over her shoulder for the fear of that glimpse of dark hair and intense gaze.

But it had not been always like this. At one time, she used to_ like_ seeing him in action. She had plenty of opportunity when she had been placed in his squad for her ANBU training. It was funny what one's mind could come up with at the most inappropriate times. Because right now, the last thing she wanted was to compare her situation now to her situation four years ago when she was only eighteen. And yet, the memories persisted in flashing across her mind.

_The mission was a success, but when had it ever been unsuccessful when Uchiha Itachi led it? Still, even with the Uchiha's exacting demands, the team dynamics were not stilted. Shiranui Genma could always be counted on to lighten up the mood, especially when he really should not be in a laughing mood. Like now. _

"_So what do you say, Hyuuga? I say we fit quite well together."_

_Sakura bit back a grin as she slid a look over her shoulders to the two men. Neji was carrying an injured Genma on his back. Instead of keeping still as he should be doing, Genma was bobbing his chin on Neji's shoulder playfully as he continued to say outrageous things to the irritated Hyuuga. She wondered how Tenzou usually reacted to this. He had gone on a well-deserved vacation while she took his place in the squad to complete the practical training segment of her ANBU syllabus. _

"_Be quiet, Shiranui," Neji ground out. "Or I will drop you."_

"_Aw, you wouldn't do that. You don't want to hurt my feelings, do you, Neji-kun?" _

_Neji scowled as Sakura struggled not to laugh out loud. _

_Suddenly Itachi instructed, "Stop."_

_They immediately halted and watched as their captain turned around to scan the area in the direction where they had come from. Sakura sensed nothing, but her every nerve was lit with wariness. _

"_Taichou?" Genma prompted, all signs of playfulness gone. _

"_Hostile forces approaching," Itachi told them. _

"_How many?" Neji asked._

"_Four. I'll handle them," Itachi declared quietly. "The three of you will carry on back to Konoha."_

_Genma frowned. "Four against one? That's not a good idea, Taichou."_

"_Go."_

_It was only her second mission with this ANBU team and so far, Sakura had managed to obey every order Itachi had issued. This time however, she knew that it would take much more than words for her to leave with Neji and Genma, abandoning Itachi to face the threat alone. _

_Neji came to her side. "Come on, Sakura. Let's go." _

"_You take Genma and go first."  
><em>

_With a last, considering look at her, Neji nodded and sped off. _

_Only then did she face their captain. "I'm staying as your back-up, Taichou," she said firmly._

_Itachi turned slowly towards her, and the hard look in his eyes almost made her shrink back. By now, she could recognize two sides of him. One was the mild persona he took on in his family environment, which she had the opportunity to observe at times when she visited Sasuke, and the other was his deadly ANBU persona, which he was currently wearing. But she refused to let it intimidate her into submission. She was uninjured and only a small amount of her chakra had been used to heal Genma earlier. There was no reason to let him face this alone when she could help._

_In an uncompromising tone, Itachi ordered, "You will leave with the rest." _

_Praying that this would not cost her a place in ANBU, she explained calmly, "I can help, Taichou. I won't get in your way. Besides, someone once told me that only scum abandoned their teammates." _

_Something flickered in his dark eyes as he studied her silently. Her heart beat quicker and quicker as her anxiety rocketed. And the only thought that she could formulate at that time was, 'I'm in trouble…'_

_But to her surprise, he gave her a curt nod and some instructions to follow. _

_The four enemy nins appeared soon afterwards and the battle raged violently. Sakura held her own, but she was only dealing with one while Itachi took on three on his own. The three soon became two, though, and after a few minutes only one was left. By then, Sakura had managed to knock her opponent unconscious, sending the shinobi crashing into a cliff face with her chakra-enhanced punch. _

_She turned around to find Itachi dealing the last blow to the enemy nin, a Katon which drew yells of pain from the nin when the attack connected. Relief washed over her at the fact that they managed to survive the battle intact. _

_Or maybe not._

_Sucking in a sharp breath at the sight of the bleeding gash in Itachi's right thigh, she ran over quickly to help him. He began to move but with a limp, which was enough to tell her that the injury was bad. The stoic Uchiha would never display such a weakness if he could help it. _

_Reaching his side, she instructed, "Sit down."_

_He nodded, and then sat on the ground while she crouched beside him. In moments, her glowing hands were sending healing chakra into his injured limb. As she had suspected, the gash was a deep one, which meant that it took some effort to mend it. It took ten minutes of concentrated work before she was happy that he was healed. _

_She swept her glowing hand over the wound once more before smiling up at him. "Now aren't you glad you didn't make me leave?" _

_It was a small move, but she did not miss it because her heart began to flutter madly. Uchiha Itachi had just smiled at her. Once again, she could not help but think, 'I'm in trouble…'_

_But this time, the reason for her thoughts was different._

Sakura shook away the memory, annoyed at the waywardness of her mind. That was the last thing she wanted to remember about Itachi. Everything had been great back when she was in his ANBU team. But it had not stayed that way because she had chosen a path which meant that ANBU was no longer viable for her.

No, she should not think about the past. It was pointless and it would not change anything.

She should focus on now and the future.

And the most important thing now was to get back to the hideout before she ran out of strength.

000

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Itachi stepped into the Hokage Tower and went straight up in the direction of the Hokage's office.

He knew that his external countenance displayed nothing of his inner turmoil, but that did not mean that he did not feel it. Two days had passed since he had lost Sakura, and yet the frustration still coursed through him after all this time. The reason for his failure was clear. He had found Sakura and he had lost her because he was too impatient to wait. He shouldn't have engaged them until he was more certain of their abilities, regardless of what the two of them might have done in the inn if he hadn't interrupted. The Iwa nukenin was more rash than he had expected and was definitely suicidal, while Sakura was completely unreceptive and hostile.

At least she was no longer the sad shadow of her old self. The Sakura he had observed lately was more like her predecessor before the marriage incident. Far from Konoha and the Uchiha, it seemed that she had grown stronger and better adjusted, something which drew mixed feelings from Itachi. On one hand, he was relieved that she was not irreparably damaged from the unpleasantness she had suffered in the Uchiha clan. On the other hand he disliked that she had to leave her own village to do so, even though it was probably the only way she could mend the damage to her personality. She had made herself a missing nin by doing so, but as much as he disliked to admit it she was definitely happier now than she had been over the her year of marriage.

How was he to persuade her to return? For she _had_ to return. One such as her could not be left roaming the world as a missing nin. Eventually, she would be found out by some hunternin or bounty-hunters and her fate would be worse than if she'd just return to Konoha willingly. Besides, there were some unresolved issues here which required her input.

When Itachi reached the level which housed the Hokage's office, Hatake Kakashi was walking towards him with the usual orange book held up to cover his masked face. As they passed, Itachi inclined his head in greeting. The Copy-Nin paused briefly, studied him with an exposed eye and then returned a nod before he continued walking.

Itachi knew he did not imagine the chill in the older nin's attitude. It had been this way ever since Sakura had left. He wondered if he should expect the same from Naruto as well should their paths cross. The twenty-one year old blond jinchuuriki was rarely in Konoha these days, almost always sent on long missions with rank so high that it was usually kept out of the books.

Suppressing the urge to turn around to confront the Copy Nin with his attitude, for such an action would be pointless, Itachi carried on until he reached the Hokage's door. Moment later, he was standing across from her desk, deliberating if he should tell the truth about his activities over the past few days.

"You're late, Uchiha," the Godaime accused. "As far as I know, it doesn't take almost a week to get from Suna to Konoha. Should I be concerned?"

"No, Hokage-sama."

Eyes narrowing in irritation, no doubt at his brief reply, Tsunade snapped, "What were you up to?" Her eyes scanned his form expertly. "I can't sense any injuries that might have held you up."

Itachi made up his mind. "I had to see to a personal matter, Hokage-sama. I apologize for not sending a message."

Tsunade eyed him consideringly as if trying to decide if he was lying. Itachi kept his expression impassive even though he knew that what he had done could be considered treason. The Hokage would want to know about Sakura but if he told her about it, then it would be akin to opening a large can of worms that he was not yet prepared to face.

"Is it a woman?"

Itachi tensed. And then realizing that the Hokage was merely probing for information, he replied truthfully, "Yes."

Nodding slowly, the Hokage leaned back. In a dry tone, she remarked, "I see. Your clan must be relieved." And then she arched a brow. "Or do they not know of her?"

"They are aware of who she is."

"I'm surprised the elders are not pushing you to marry someone from your clan."

Itachi willed himself not to clench his hands into fists. The elders' interference in something which was so clearly personal never failed to irk him. "She is well-connected."

"I see." Tsunade glanced away. "Well, then. Don't make this a habit. If you require time off, do so through the proper channels. Are we clear?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama." And after a brief pause, he added, "I may require some time off shortly if there are no urgent missions requiring my presence."

She waved a hand disinterestedly, clearly not believing that he had any intention of taking leave. "Very well. Just let me know ahead of time so that I can work it into the ANBU schedule."

Itachi nodded. "May I present my report now?" he asked mildly, changing the topic. It would not do for the Hokage to probe further.

Tsunade gestured for him to continue.

"The Kazekage succeeded in revealing the defensive technique which had stopped us from retrieving the segment of the tablet in the past. Once revealed, Tenzou was able to deactivate it."

"Aa. He reported when he got back several days ago. But carry on, I want to hear what you have to say before you hand in the written report."

"With the defensive technique gone, the segment of the tablet solidified. I requested for the Kazekage to keep this segment and explained the reason."

"Tenzou said you did something with your crows."

"I've spread them out to locate anything with a similar energy signature. I haven't heard back from any of them yet."

Tsunade frowned thoughtfully. "Hm. It's like searching for a needle in a haystack. If it wasn't such a dangerous thing, I would assign more shinobi to this. But it's probably best if we limit the number of people who know about this tablet."

"Aa."

"So, is there anything else?"

"That's all, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage nodded, and then reached for a scroll stacked to one side of the large desk. She flicked it open to peruse its contents before rolling it up again. Then it was flying through the air.

Itachi caught it.

"Your next mission."

He inclined his head in acceptance.

"You're dismissed."

Bowing respectfully, he then turned and walked out of the office.

He had barely left the Hokage Tower when he began to think of the problem with Sakura once again. There was a need to find her quickly before she could put too much distance between them. As he leapt from rooftop to rooftop, he considered various tracking options. His crows were currently occupied with locating potential hideouts for the stone tablet fragments, so it would be best not to split their attention. He could use the cat summons but those felines also had contracts with many other Uchiha, which meant that there was potential for Sakura's existence to be leaked out prematurely.

Shadow clones would be another possibility. In fact, this might be the best option considering the need for secrecy. The only real disadvantage was the potential for him to run out of chakra before Sakura was found because he already had two other clones out there gathering information for him. However, if he only created one other shadow clone, that should leave him with just enough to carry on with his regular missions until the shadow clones either completed their tasks or were dispelled by other means.

By the time Itachi reached home, he had made up his mind.

Shadow clones it was, then.

000

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Sakura pulled the old blanket over the sleeping blond. They had arrived yesterday and she had fortunately managed to remember enough of what Deidara had told her to gain entry into this hideout. It was a series of chambers within a cave, accessible only by the main protected entrance which meant that it was perfect for them while Deidara recuperated.

She had found some basic provisions in the form of sleeping mats, blankets, some spare clothes and dried food. It was enough for them to live on for a couple of weeks or so but no more than that. Hopefully by then, Deidara would be healed enough to move. He had remained unconscious since yesterday but she knew that it was nothing to worry about. His body just needed rest to mend itself.

With so much free time on her hands, she could not help but wonder how she could make sure that they did not run into Itachi again. If the Uchiha wanted to track her down, it would be near impossible for her to avoid it. And what if he reported her sighting to Tsunade? Her shishou would be so disappointed in her. But surely Tsunade would understand why she had done it. Tsunade had known about the real reason behind the entire mess of a marriage.

Ever since that encounter with Itachi, pieces of her past kept returning to haunt her. With a heavy sigh, Sakura leaned back against the cave wall and allowed the memories she had worked so hard to suppress to trickle back.

_The loud thumping on her front door jolted Sakura out of her sleep. Groaning, she sat up and immediately wished that she hadn't. The room swam before her as she struggled to focus and make sense of the pounding in and outside her head. Her mouth felt terrible and the back of her eyes were gritty._

_It was one hell of a hangover. _

_Despite the awful state she was in, she managed to grin when she recalled the reason for the hangover. She, Naruto, Kakashi, Neji and Genma had been out all night celebrating her success in making it into the ANBU ranks. Later today, Tsunade would officially change her status and she would get the much coveted ANBU tattoo on her arm. _

_The thumping increased in intensity, jolting her out of her musings. Swinging her legs off her bed and glancing down to make sure that she was decently attired, she then pressed her glowing palms to her head to sooth it as she walked to the door. _

_She opened it to find a chuunin fidgeting there._

"_Haruno-san. The Hokage wants to see you urgently," he said quickly. _

_Her brows furrowed. What had happened? To the chuunin, she said, "Thanks, Kaito. I'll be there shortly."_

_The chuunin nodded and then left. Sakura returned to her place, showering and changing her clothes before executing a transportation jutsu which brought her to the front door of the Hokage Tower. Less than a minute later, she was in Tsunade's office, facing her grim-looking shishou. _

"_What happened, Shishou?" she asked worriedly, her hangover all but forgotten._

"_There is no easy way to say this so I'll just get straight to the point."_

_Sakura blinked in confusion. "Okay…"_

"_This all started two and a half years ago." Tsunade frowned. "I thought he would forget the damned idea but that's not the case. The bastard wants to get a foot in the administration by arranging a marriage between his son and my only apprentice."_

_Sakura's eyes widened incredulously. "Me?" she squeaked. After a stunned moment, she managed to blurt out indignantly, "Who the hell is he?"_

_Tsunade met her eyes. "Uchiha Fugaku came to see me yesterday. He wants you to marry his son."_

_She gaped. Sasuke? But surely Sasuke had something to say about that? In fact, if this had begun more than two years ago, wouldn't he have mentioned something to her? Or maybe Fugaku hadn't said anything to Sasuke either. _

"_I stalled him then by saying that at sixteen, you're too young to make such a huge life-changing decision, and it is ridiculous for you to abandon a bright future in your shinobi career. But obviously, he hasn't given up."_

"_I can't believe this," Sakura muttered. "Why?"_

"_I suppose the marriage would narrow the divide between the Senju and the Uchiha, so it would keep them happy for a while. I'm the last Senju alive." Tsunade's lips twisted in a wry smile. "And unfortunately for you, you're the closest to a daughter I'd ever have." _

_Sakura felt a rush of warmth. "Shishou…" _

_Tsunade shook her hand brusquely. "You're more than old enough to make your own decision now, and I can't sway him in the other direction without looking as if I object to the idea of closer ties between the Senju and the Uchiha. And you know what would happen if I was seen to object to anything the Uchiha says," she said flatly. _

_Sakura winced. The Uchiha clan seemed to have a large chip on their shoulder about the fact that another Senju was the Hokage. For generations, they had made it clear that they should not be made subservient to the Senju, and had demanded the equal opportunity to become the Hokage. The way Sakura saw it, the Hokage was the strongest shinobi in the village, so if the clan could produce someone that fit the description, then this whole thing should no longer be an issue. _

_Unfortunately for the Uchiha, it was pretty hard to be stronger than the kyuubi jinchuuriki. But even though Naruto was not a Senju, it was still not acceptable since he was not an Uchiha. _

"_So, I thought I should warn you that you're likely to be receiving a marriage proposal today." _

_Sakura felt the blood rush away from her head. A marriage proposal? _

_Bangs sounded on the door then, interrupting them. "Baa-chan! I'm coming in!"_

_A second later, Naruto joined them, looking disgustingly fresh even after all that drinking. "Ah, Sakura-chan, you're here too." _

_Glaring at him, Tsunade snapped, "When I say knock, you're supposed to knock and then stay out there until I say you can enter! When are you going to learn some basic manners?"_

_Grinning sheepishly, Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "So, do you have a mission for me?"_

_Tsunade huffed irritably before turning to her. Expression changing to one of mild concern, she advised, "Choose wisely, Sakura." _

"_Choose what?" Naruto interjected curiously._

"_None of your business!" _

"_But Baa-chan! It's Sakura, so it IS my business!"_

"_You'll be too busy with your mission today to bother her in any way."_

_Sakura left the Hokage's office in a daze, leaving Tsunade and Naruto to bicker as they usually did. For the next few hours, she was jittery with nerves. Sasuke would approach her today and propose. What should she say? It was something his father came up with, but how did he take it? After everything that had happened between them, how did he expect her to deal with a proposal from him? _

_She would go hang out with Naruto, which would be the best thing to do if one wanted to avoid a proposal, but it was clear from their conversation earlier that her friend would be busy. _

_Somehow, she found herself on the top of the Hokage Mountain. Sighing, she sat down and stared at the village spread out beyond. She loved her village. It was peaceful now but would it continue this way if the Uchiha decided to revolt? If she refused the proposal, their Uchiha pride would take it as a slight, she was sure. Would they retaliate with violence? Could she marry Sasuke for the sake of keeping the peace? _

_She groaned helplessly. What should she do? _

_The subtle sound of footsteps made her tense. Slowly, she turned to look over her shoulder, but as he had not bothered to mask his chakra, she already knew who it was. What was he doing here, though? Curious, she stood up and faced him. _

"_Sakura."_

"_Taichou." _

_His onyx eyes flickered in that usual indecipherable way. For some time, he simply stared at her, making her feel awkward at his scrutiny. She could never get over how attractive he was and right now, with just the two of them here, the effect was more powerful. She only hoped that he did not guess what she was thinking. It would be awfully embarrassing if he did. _

_After a long silence, she prompted uncertainly, "Is everything alright?" _

"_Aa." And then he said quietly, "I have a proposal for you." _

_Sakura's eyes widened in shock. _

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	7. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thank you to all who was kind enough to leave a review. Here's the next chapter. As usual, remember that this is a ItaSaku AND DeiSaku story, so there are times when there will be a lack of interaction between one of the couples. And for those who will be celebrating Easter this weekend, Happy Easter!

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><p><strong><span>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 6<span>**

Disorientation was the first thing Deidara felt when consciousness slowly seeped into him. Then the sensations came forth. And none of them was pleasant.

"Fuck it hurts!"

He tried to sit up, only to groan loudly as pain racketed through him. With some serious effort, he peeled his eyes open to find himself within one of the chambers of his hideout, lying on a narrow pallet he had left here years ago. It took a minute or two of harsh breathing before the haze of pain cleared enough for him to think.

He was still alive, he thought with no small amount of surprise. The C3 should have taken the bastard out. Instead, the fucking idiot had used a weird technique to interfere with the jutsu and sent it blasting in the wrong direction. Then that ANBU had reversed it. _Reversed it!_ Who the hell _sucked in_ an explosion? Who the hell spared his opponent like that? The freak!

Deidara blinked at his familiar surroundings. How the hell did he get here? He was nowhere close to this hideout when he had set the explosive off.

Wait. Sakura. Sakura had been hovering over him and he remembered how scared she had looked as she cried over him. He winced, realizing that he hoped never to see that expression on her face again. Shit! If he needed an evidence of just how much she had gotten under his skin, that was it.

He exhaled loudly. She must have dragged him back here and healed him after he had told her how to get into this hideout. So where was she now?

It was much too painful to try to sit up, so he remained lying down while he scanned the area. From his position within this small chamber within the network of caves, he could see the outer chamber. The remains of a small fire were there as well as some of his old battered clay pots and bowls. There was a faint smell of food in the air so someone had definitely been cooking.

But he could not sense Sakura.

He reached out with his senses and tried to pinpoint that locating clay he had hidden in her medic pouch only to find nothing. Concern spiked through him. She had to be really far if he could not even detect a _hint_ of his clay.

He tried again, harder this time, only to find nothing once again. Then...

_What the hell? _

The sensation of something foreign itching behind his neck sent his senses on high alert. Twisting his body around with a hiss of pain, he cupped the back of his neck and allowed the tongue in his palm to lap at his skin. It retreated in disgust after a single taste, but it was enough to tell Deidara what had happened.

The freaking, stone-faced ANBU bastard actually had the nerve to try to track him again? No way would he just let it happen.

Too slowly for his liking, he managed to struggle into a sitting position. Focusing his attention to the back of his neck which was no easy feat considering that every move was agony, he studied the jutsu. It was not a tracking jutsu he was particularly familiar with, but the principle was the same as what the old man back in Iwa had taught him. The tracker would insert some of his own chakra bound with a tracking jutsu into the target's body, making sure that the amount was large enough to send out a signal regularly but small enough to remain hidden. This was similar to the technique he was using on Sakura's medic pouch, but it was an advanced version as the jutsu needed to remain functional in a living person.

Deidara snorted derisively. Did that Leaf ANBU really think that _this_ was something he could not deal with? The bastard was sure underestimating him if he thought that this would be enough to get him to Sakura.

Molding his own chakra, Deidara directed it to surround the foreign intrusion. He executed the disabling jutsu he had learnt so many years ago, effectively hindering the tracking technique's signaling capabilities. There was nothing much he could do about the bastard's chakra now, but in a few weeks, his jutsu would kill off the foreign chakra and end the tracking technique for good.

He lowered his hands, and then looked around again. Now that this nonsense had been dealt with, his attention refocused on finding his partner. Where was Sakura? He itched to find her. It annoyed him that he was stuck here, but he was not stupid enough to go hobbling about with such a bad injury. Crossing his arms over his chest, he rested back against the cold wall and waited impatiently.

An hour or so passed before he felt someone approaching from a distance. Thinking it might be Sakura, he immediately reached out to find the clay he had hidden on her, only to find nothing. It could be a civilian, or a shinobi skilled at masking his chakra. If the stranger was bent on giving him trouble, it could turn out really bad because he was a sitting duck here. He had his clay, of course. Or not, he amended after a glance at his flattened clay pouch. It would be really humiliating if a civilian hunter did him in.

The next thing he knew, a familiar voice calling out his name quietly. He frowned when he realized that he _still_ could not detect any signs of his clay. When she finally appeared at the opening to his chamber, his eyes immediately swept downwards to find her familiar grey medic pouch replaced with a sand-colored one.

"Where's your old pouch?"

Her eyes narrowed immediately. "You've been out for days and the first thing you're asking about is my medic pouch. Why?"

Deidara scowled. Unfazed by her suspicion, he told her point blank, "I tagged your old medic pouch with some locating clay."

She tensed, and then, "WHAT! What the hell for, you idiot?"

"How else am I supposed to find you when you disappear, yeah?" And now, he had to find someplace else to tag her.

She stared at him incredulously. "You've been tracking me?" Her voice rose as she added, "Ever heard of something called _privacy_?"

He winced at her voice. "Oi! Not so loud, yeah! My head fucking hurts!"

Her expression went from being angry to being alarmed. Dropping to her knees by the side of the pallet, she asked gruffly as she ran her glowing hands over his chest, "So how are you feeling?"

"Like I'm brand now, yeah." Like chunks of himself were missing, he added silently while pulling her hands away. He had not expected to survive the blast but she must have worked her ass off to make sure he lived. Absently, he released her hands and reached up to rub his chest.

And froze in shock when all he felt was smoothness under his clothes and bandages.

"What the fuck! Where is it?" he snarled and yanked his mesh top to reveal his bandaged chest.

He directed chakra there but nothing responded. NOTHING! His anxiety went sky high. Before he could jump to his feet and rip off the bandages, Sakura pressed his shoulders and forced him back down to the mat.

"Lie down! You'll hurt yourself!" she snapped.

He pinned a glare at her. "Let me go, yeah! Where is it?"

He struggled but the pain shooting through him and Sakura's hold meant that he was not going anywhere. Furious, he stopped struggling to carry on glaring at the kunoichi staring down at him. Her expression was stricken.

"I'm sorry, Deidara." Her brows furrowed worriedly. "Your chest was badly injured and I have no idea how to fix the kinjutsu. It was gone. There was just a gaping hole when I got to it."

Deidara jaw went slack. No, she could not be saying what she was saying. No, no, NO! This could not be happening. Yes, he might have been caught in the explosion but he shouldn't have lost this kinjutsu so easily. This was meant to be his ultimate technique.

"Why the hell did you bother to save me without saving it?" he barked, so angry that he was practically shaking.

"I should have left you to die then?" she snapped. "Is that what you want?"

"Yeah, why not?" He clenched his hands and turned away to stare at the wall, furious at how things had turned out. "My ultimate weapon is gone."

A fist slammed to the ground beside his head and he felt chunks of rocks crunching behind his head. He snapped his head around to glare at her, wondering what the hell her problem was now. The only person who should be pissed here was him, not her, seeing that he had lost his main weapon because he had been stupid enough to step into _her_ fight.

"You ungrateful bastard!" she snarled as her eyes flashed with fury. "I really should have left you to die there."

His eyes narrowed as he pushed himself up, ignoring the pain shooting through him. "Without my ultimate weapon, I might as well be."

She jerked back and gave him an incredulous look. "Don't be stupid."

"I'm serious, yeah," he shot back.

Her jaw ticked. "You're just sulking now."

He thumped his chest. "This weapon is supposed to be the greatest expression of my art. In a single blast, literally everything gets wiped out. But now it's gone even without being used once."

"And when it goes off, you die? That's suicide!" she gasped.

"It's not!" he protested. "It's the art of a single moment. And I wasn't planning on wasting something so great on that fucking Leaf ANBU. Even the C3 was too good for him."

To his surprise, Sakura paled visibly. "Are you telling me the C3 killed It… the ANBU?"

She was about to say something there before she stopped herself, Deidara realized as suspicion grew. It was beginning to sound to him like there was something going on between her and the ANBU, and that something was not only Konoha business. Her reaction as well as the ANBU's persistent series of questions all but confirmed that they were not just casual acquaintances.

"Deidara?" she prompted. "Did you kill him?"

He shrugged carelessly. "Don't know. Maybe."

Her face paled instantly. She turned away from him to stand at the entrance to his chamber, as if she didn't want him to see her expression. Her posture was tense and that confirmed his suspicion. Just how close was Sakura to this ANBU? How much would Sakura tell him if he asked?

Why the hell did he care anyway?

He closed his eyes and let himself fall back down on the mat. What was he thinking? No, he did not care. Caring had cost him the kinjutsu, the single most important part of his art. It was a mistake he would not make again.

Now, the best thing for him to do would be to rest and then figure out a way to get the kinjutsu functioning again.

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Itachi's next mission for Konoha was thankfully a solo one. He was tasked to retrieve the Daimyo's favorite niece and to eliminate the mercenaries who were responsible for kidnapping her.

Once he was within the enemy stronghold, it did not take long for him to stealthily kill all the guards around the outer perimeter. Moving swiftly through the darkened hallways of the traditionally laid out compound, he passed one shoji screen after another until he heard a muffled shriek from a room at the end.

Without pause, he darted towards it and crashed through the fragile construction. Anger and disgust roiled through him at the sight of two burly mercenaries holding down the struggling girl, clearly with the intent of molesting the teenaged girl. In mere seconds, he had the two mercenaries on the floor with puddles of blood spreading out beneath their bodies.

Horrified by the scene, the Daimyo's niece released a loud scream before fainting.

The noise alerted the rest of the guards and shouts rang through the air but he was already prepared to face them. Most of the mercenaries were ill-equipped to handle high level genjutsu but amongst them were a number of skilled missing nin who were able to avoid being trapped in the first place.

It did not take long for him to kill all three missing nins.

The compound cleared, he placed explosive tags in strategic locations and went back to the room where he'd left the Daimyo's niece. Propping her onto his back, he ran and distanced them from the explosions which decimated the compound. He moved without a break, intent on reaching the Daimyo's place as fast as he could for two reasons. First, the girl needed medical attention as he could not tell if she had been harmed before his appearance. Secondly, he wished to complete this mission speedily so that he could attend to personal matters.

He froze suddenly as a burst of chakra washed over him, almost dropping the unconscious girl in the process.

A moment later, information from his clone flooded his mind. This particular clone had been scouring various countries for the past year and had just been dispelled because he was overpowered by a group of Mist ANBU. The information he had gained consisted of many things, but the one information he was seeking remained elusive.

With this clone destroyed, he had only one more out there. Itachi knew that this remaining clone had not gained the information he required or else he would return or dispel himself. He would need to create another clone soon and this time the clone would have to seek out two different people, one of them being Sakura.

It would not be the first time his clone spied on her. Years ago, after she had surprised him with her acceptance of his marriage proposal, he had sent a clone to shadow her in the attempt to discover the motives for her decision. He had not understood the reasons until much later, when it was already too late for him to reverse everything he had placed in motion.

Sighing inwardly, Itachi continued to move towards the Daimyo's residence. As he did so, memories from the past flashed across his eyes.

_It was a chilly night, with the clear sky displaying millions of twinkling stars. Itachi inhaled deeply as he studied the constellation briefly before he refocused his attention on the path he was taking. He had just left his parent's house a short while ago and now he was only too happy to increase the distance between himself and the place where he had grown up. _

_His father had once again broached the subject of marriage, specifically to a certain Hokage's apprentice. Fugaku had reiterated the benefits of such a union and insisted that Itachi displayed an interest to the kunoichi. And again, Itachi had refused, much to his father's displeasure. He would never agree to something like this, tying down another person to him just for the sake of duty, especially since he was certain that Sakura had no such interest in him. After all, he was not Sasuke. As long as there was a chance for Sasuke and Sakura to be together, he would not encroach upon them, regardless of his growing awareness of his brother's teammate. Sasuke as usual was not present during the discussion and therefore was unable to defend his relationship with Sakura. His little brother had just left on a month-long mission. It probably wouldn't have made much of a difference even if Sasuke was in Konoha since he had never been part of any discussions on this topic despite Itachi's insistence that it was better to match Sasuke with Sakura if all Fugaku wanted was a tie to the Hokage. _

_His troubled thoughts continued to plague him as he walked along the perimeter of Training Ground Two. Exhaling loudly, he pinched the bridge of his nose. This attraction he felt for Sakura was inconvenient, considering her ties with Sasuke and Fugaku's constant pressure for him to wed her. He did not even understand how he had ended up with this dilemma. The girl had done nothing to encourage him. Her demeanor was always professional when she interacted with him, unlike many other women who flirted outrageously with him to gain his attention. Besides, she was never as open and carefree with him as she had always done with Sasuke. There was always a distance between them. That was how he knew for certain that she was not attracted to him. _

_A loud cracking sound reached him, interrupting his thoughts. He stilled as recognition dawned followed quickly by a sense of shameful anticipation. _

_It was Sakura._

_She was in Training Ground Three. The fact that she was training so late in the night did not come as a surprise to him. There was only four weeks before Sakura's ANBU examinations and he knew that she would make every effort to ensure that she passed. _

_Standing at the edge of the training ground, he was deliberating if he should enter to observe her training when she appeared before him in a cloud of smoke. She had been training for a while, judging by the state of her clothes and the sheen on sweat on her skin. There was also a smudge of earth on her cheek that was provoking him to reach over and wipe it off. He barely refrained from doing so. _

"_Taichou," she greeted a little breathlessly. "Are you looking for me?" _

"_I was just passing by."_

"_Oh." And then she grinned. "By the way, I finally got that genjutsu you taught me. Thank you so much." _

_Her enthusiastic appreciation for the small gesture he had made a week ago unsettled him. "I merely gave you a scroll. It was hardly teaching."_

"_It's a great jutsu." And then she bit her lips uncertainly before she asked, "You want to see it? Only if you have time, of course. I don't want to interrupt your journey or anything like that. And it's pretty late already, so…"_

_He watched as she trailed off, looking uncomfortable. So he found himself saying, "Show me." _

_And when she beamed widely, her pleasure shone through and it made something in his chest twist. She was so free, so unburdened that he both envied and admired her for it. Someone like her would suffer in the stifling environment favored by the majority of the Uchiha. _

_No, he would not do such a despicable thing to her. _

But he had exactly that and worse, had he not?

Itachi sighed as he adjusted his hold on the girl before moving faster. These memories were haunting him and there was nothing he could do to stop them from occupying his mind. But they might cease once he found her and resolved everything between them.

Then perhaps he would stop feeling guilty.

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Crouched not far from the cave entrance, Sakura stared at the dying fire as she sprinkled earth on to it. It was getting dark so they were putting out the fire to make sure that it did not attract unwanted attention. At the opposite side of the fire, Deidara buried the remains of their dinner, fish bones mostly, in a shallow pit before he sat back.

"So who is he, yeah?"

Sakura tensed, knowing fully well who Deidara was referring to. She had been expecting this line of questioning for the past two days, ever since he had regained consciousness and had gotten over his fury of losing the kinjutsu on his chest. Without looking up from the tiny fire she was currently extinguishing, she replied, "Konoha ANBU."

"I can tell that much, yeah." An unfamiliar irritation tinged his tone when he asked, "Don't play dumb. Who is he to you?"

With an exasperated huff, she completed her task and stood up. Deidara was seated against a tree, staring up at her expectantly. There was no smirk on his face, no teasing light in his eyes. He was serious and he wanted an answer.

"Why? What does it matter?" she asked tersely.

"What does it matter?" Deidara stood up slowly, his eyes not leaving hers. "Are you listening to yourself? The man _interrogated _me. Not on my affiliation or the usual shit. He was more concerned about who I am to you. Now why is that, hm?"

Interrogated? Sakura blinked in surprise at Deidara. "What did he ask you?"

"Stuff!"

"Like?" she prompted impatiently, not entirely sure why she was so bothered. There was really nothing much Deidara could tell Itachi, anyway. But what information was Itachi after?

"Stuff like how we met."

Sakura frowned. "What does that matter?" she muttered under her breath.

Deidara snorted. "Who knows? But he obviously cares because he asked, right? So who is he?"

She shook her head stubbornly. "No one important. He led the team I was training with at one point."

"Training?"

She scowled. "ANBU training. Surely Iwa nins have training schedules and examinations like other hidden villages."

His expression turned mutinous. "I don't want to talk about Iwa, yeah. And you're just trying to change the topic now. Some random squad leader wouldn't show this much interest in a trainee unless there's something else at play."

"My past is my business," she pointed out tersely.

"I don't care about your past so long as it _stays_ in the past. But that Leaf ANBU…" He stabbed a finger in the direction where the fight had taken place before he continued, "…is bringing your past right up in my face, yeah."

"So what? He's not here now. Why are you getting so riled up about this?" she shot back, getting as agitated as he was.

Three steps brought him face to face with her. His blue eyes were glittering intensely when he ground out, "You really have to ask, hm?"

She looked away, unable to hold his gaze. Their conversation had been interrupted prematurely, but she still remembered how the air had all but crackled with sexual tension back at the inn. There was not much point in denying the attraction between them, was there? But even if she was not denying it, should she be consciously encouraging it?

Especially now with Itachi entering the picture. Seeing him again brought back everything she had sought to forget. It also reminded her that engaging in such emotions opened up the potential for one to get hurt. However, who was to say that Deidara would hurt her in the same way? He was as opposite to Itachi as one could get. Deidara was loud and brash, saying what he felt no matter what the outcome would be, while Itachi was reserved and seemed to think over everything a million times before acting on it. With Deidara, she knew exactly what to expect, while with Itachi, there was no telling what was going on in that mind of his.

Surely getting burnt once, no matter how badly, did not mean that she should not try being in a relationship again? Maybe she owed it to herself to at least try.

And she could understand why Deidara was asking questions. He only wanted to know what was going on between her and Itachi because of their current interest in each other. She doubted that he was the type to poach on another's territory, but she could not be sure. To be fair, he deserved the truth, especially after helping her escape to such cost to himself. But did she really want to bring her sorry past out in the open? The memories that she had suppressed welled up over her defenses but she shook them off before they could take hold.

"Are you going to answer me or not, hm? Who is he to you?"

She jerked at the interruption to her thoughts and then turned to a scowling Deidara. Exhaling loudly, she told him, "He's just someone from my past. We had a… history. And it's not a pretty story."

Deidara frowned. "What? He's like your lover or something?"

Looking away, she admitted, "Not quite."

His expression turned incredulous. "Not quite? What kind of an answer is that? A little hard not to be able to tell, unless you're unconscious and he went at it without your consent. You either slept with him or not, yeah."

She exhaled loudly. "Not, then. Look, I really don't want to talk about that part of my life. It doesn't matter anyway because it has all ended when I left Konoha." She slanted a glance at Deidara to find him staring at her suspiciously. Irritation spiking through her, she threw at him, "Not that it's any of your business to start with."

"If your stupid past stays in the past, then yeah, it's none of my business." He scowled. "Besides, it cost me my kinjutsu, so I say it's indirectly my business."

Her eyes narrowed in irritation, remembering now how he had ignored her advice to leave. Planting her fists on her hips, she demanded to know, "Why the hell did you get yourself involved in the first place? I _told_ you to run. _You_ wanted to get involved, so don't blame me for this!"

"What choice did I have? Are you saying I should've let him drag you back to Konoha, hm?" he challenged. "Do you _want_ to go back to Konoha?"

She turned away. Deidara had a good point. The question was not one she had bothered to consider at length in the past, because the answer should be obvious, right? But now she was not so sure.

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That was his cue to shut up and stop sounding like a jealous freak. They had enough problems without adding _this _to it. Their partnership seemed to have gone to hell since that unfortunate kiss and he did not know how to deal with it anymore. He was not the type to back down usually but he had a feeling that if he pushed this, things would end up worse.

Scowling, he dismissed, "Forget it. I won't want you digging into my business as well, so let just forget this ever happened."

She gaped at him.

"What?" Deidara snapped. "You want to fight over it still?"

She looked at him for a moment, and then muttered, "Fine. It's time we made a move anyway." Concern flashed across her face then. "Are you sure you'll be alright to travel so soon?"

He smirked. "This is Earth Country, yeah. I know it like the back of my hand."

"It's not about how well you know this place. It's about your injuries," she pointed out, exasperated. "They were pretty bad, in case you've forgotten."

He rubbed his chest, looking away from her. "I haven't forgotten, yeah."

How could he, when the result was the loss of the most powerful part of the kinjutsu? When he had gotten it off the sealed archives back in Iwa, the technique used to imbue those mouths on him was complicated but not so complicated that he could not remember it. However, when he had executed the same technique yesterday, nothing happened except a mild tingling in his hands. Despite the enormous amount of chakra he had flooded to his chest to regenerate the mouth again, it refused to resurface. Perhaps once it was gone, it was gone, which meant that he was fucked, really.

"You okay, Deidara?"

He slid a glance at her, noting that she still looked worried. Part of him was irritated by her fussing but another part of him relished her concern. The contrast made him edgy.

"Don't worry yeah. I won't die that easily."

She rolled her eyes, making him grin.

They gathered their belongings and erased their presence from the site before moving away. By then, the sun had disappeared down into the horizon, allowing them to travel in the shadows of the rocky terrain. According to Sakura, this was a necessary precaution since he was too well known in Earth Country to travel in broad daylight. He was not bothered by the possibility of an encounter but he humored her because the argument was simply not worth it.

Swiftly, they launched themselves from one rock to another, keeping to the darkened areas. He inhaled deeply as he moved, tasting the unique scent of Earth Country at the back of his throat. Being back here brought back memories. This area was one he had been sent to patrol for a whole month and that was when he had found the cave and made it his own hideout. The Tsuchikage had thought to teach him a lesson on survival in the wild but Deidara had managed to smuggle all sorts of comforts into his hideout. Idly, he wondered what old Onoki would say if he had found out that his student had been doing nothing but laze around making sculptures for most of that month.

Realizing where his thoughts had wandered, Deidara gave himself an inward shake. He did not like to think about the past. And yet, he had tried to get Sakura to speak about hers, a snide voice at the back of his mind reminded him. She was clearly as reluctant to speak about the past as he was. He wouldn't have pressed the issue if he was not so pissed off with that Leaf ANBU.

Still, Sakura had said that whatever that was between them was now over, so what now? Before the bastard had interrupted them at the inn, Deidara had sworn that something was about to happen between him and Sakura. He could remember feeling all buzzed up and thinking that hell, she had never looked more attractive. Partner or not, it would have taken a stronger man than him to resist the attraction. Besides, he was not usually the type to hold back when he wanted something.

So he wanted her, then?

Glancing to the side, he studied her surreptitiously. She was concentrating keeping her footing on the unfamiliar terrain. There was a small furrow between her brows which looked adorable.

_Adorable?_

A loud groan escaped him as he jerked his eyes away from her. He _did not_ just think that! What the hell? His brain was turning into mush. That word should not even exist in his vocabulary.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Without looking at her, just in case his mind came up with anymore lame-ass words, he muttered, "Nothing, yeah."

He could feel her questioning gaze on him, but he ignored it. She lost interest eventually and removed her attention from him.

"So where are we going?" he asked after a while. "Or do I get to pick somewhere this time?"

"Your turn. You're going to make us do something really unethical, aren't you?" she said dryly.

_Unethical?_ He stalled on the next rock and spun around to stare at her in disbelief. "You heard yourself back there, hm? Unethical? We're missing nins, yeah. Not some fucking do-gooders!"

Stopping as well, she crossed her arms over her chest. "You can pick what mission you like, but I still need to agree to be part of the mission," she pointed out. "Or you're on your own."

Riled now, he shot back, "I agreed to that last mission of yours, yeah! Even though I fucking hated it."

"And it went well, didn't it?" she challenged.

And of course, it instantly brought back the memories of _that_ kiss. And from the sudden silence from Sakura, he knew that she just remembered it as well. Hell, they really had to do something to ease this tension between them or he would crack one day and do something stupid.

Suddenly, she tensed. "Quiet. Something is nearby."

Immediately wary, Deidara nodded once and then used his senses to scan their surroundings. Neither of them were skilled sensors but both of them could do a passable job when the distance was not too great.

They identified the threat at the same time.

"Team of four shinobi."

"Likely to be Iwa ANBU patrolling, yeah," he said quietly.

"We're not fighting them, you hear me, Deidara?" she hissed. "Where can we hide?"

He rolled his eyes. She was such a spoilsport. Taking them down would have been fun. Reluctantly, he surveyed the area around them and then jerked his head towards a deep fissure in the rocky ground.

"In there."

Soundlessly, both of them went down the crack in the rocks, using only their bare hands to guide them and no chakra to avoid the risk of detection. The descent was precarious and once or twice, Deidara almost lost his hold on the rock. Fuck, he was more likely to die here than up there fighting with the ANBU, he thought sourly.

Wordlessly, both of them stopped when it seemed like they were deep enough in the ground to be hidden from the Iwa patrol. Barely breathing, they waited. She was wedged just next to him and the warmth from her body was strangely reassuring. Being so close to her again after all their near misses was raising hell with his body but this was definitely not the time to act on it.

"Are they gone?" he muttered after what seemed like forever.

"I don't sense anything anymore," she whispered and then shifted.

Their faces bumped and he froze. There was a choked sound and the next thing he felt was her breath on his lips. Involuntarily, a soft groan left him. This was just too much, yeah. He was going to give in and face the consequences later.

Then he was dipping his head down to meet her lips. He swore he could feel the rush of blood to his head as he made contact. She tensed only briefly and then to his satisfaction, she was returning his kiss. An involuntary groan left him as the kiss deepened and his hands went to her neck to pull her closer. She was making these small moans and breathless hitches that seem to shoot pleasure straight up his spine. What he had experienced during their make out session on that mission was clearly not a fluke. The chemistry between them was unbelievable. Hell, he did not remember ever feeling like he was fucking drowning from a simple kiss.

Eventually, the need for breath tore them apart. Hating how he was almost panting, he stared down at her but was frustrated when he could only see slight outlines of her features in the darkness. He wanted to gauge her reaction because stupidly enough, he _cared_ about what she was thinking.

His brain was definitely turning into mush. Fuck, it was time to blow up something for sure. Maybe _that_ would reset his mind.

"W-Well…" Sakura whispered shakily. "That was… unexpected."

He tensed and then returned just as quietly, "You can admit that you loved it, yeah. I won't laugh."

A soft snort sounded from her and somehow, that made him feel much better. The tension he had not realized was within him eased at the sound. This time, it did not seem as if she was going to retreat and hide. It made him feel strangely optimistic.

Wait, optimistic? Optimistic about what?

"And you can tell?" she shot back.

"Of course," he said confidently. "Who was moaning into my mouth, hm? Who was licking my tongue like she can't get enough?"

Her mortification came through clearly in her groan, making him grin. After a moment, she muttered, "You think they're gone?"

Accepting her change in topic for now, he returned, "That's what I asked you earlier, and you said you can't sense them, yeah." Grin widening, he added, "Don't worry, this brain meltdown thing is a common side effect of the kiss." And he was not exempt from the effect either.

"Shut up," she ground out as she shoved him painfully against the rock face before scrambling up.

"Hey, wait up, yeah!"

And he had better wipe that idiotic grin off his face before he surfaced and she saw it. There was no sense in embarrassing himself, was there?

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A soft moan broke into his thoughts and Itachi turned to the source of the sound.

The teenage girl he had rescued was whimpering in fear now, her eyes shooting open as she sat up from the bedroll while her fragile body trembled uncontrollably. In a fraction of a second, Itachi was crouched before her, his Sharingan already swirling in his eyes. The scream never made it past her lips. In the next moment, she was asleep again. Itachi sighed as he pulled the bedding tighter around her to keep her warm.

He had arrived just in time to stop the mercenaries from inflicting themselves on her but she'd been so traumatized that each time she regained consciousness, she would panic and scream. Even though she had been saved from physical harm, Itachi knew that it would be a while before she recovered from the psychological ones, if ever. Things would be difficult for her for a long while.

When dawn arrived, he picked the girl up and moved again.

It took him another day to deliver his charge to her relieved but concerned father and then he made his way to the Hokage's office. The midmorning sun was already high in the sky when he knocked on her door and entered after her acknowledgement.

The Hokage looked up from her desk, appearing weary even at this early hour. The workload of a Hokage was not something to be laughed at. It occurred to Itachi that she should really be training a successor soon. No doubt Fugaku had his own preference when it came to that but Itachi was fairly certain that he would not agree with his father's choice.

She raised a questioning brow. "Uchiha. The mission?"

"I delivered the girl to the Daimyo."

Tsunade frowned. "How is she?"

"Physically unharmed but she was badly traumatized. It was necessary to use the Sharingan to keep her unconscious."

Her expression darkened. "The mercenaries?"

"Dead."

"Good." After a thoughtful pause, she asked, "Any witnesses?"

"None, Hokage-sama. No one can trace this to us."

"A job well done, Uchiha. So, if there's nothing else…"

"There is, Hokage-sama. I would like to request some personal time."

The Hokage tapped her finger on the desk thoughtfully. "I didn't think you were serious about that. You haven't asked for a single personal day in years." She gave him a curious look. "I suppose I shouldn't ask what you're up to? Or is this about that girl you were talking about last time?"

"It is personal."

"Very well." Tsunade took out a scroll which unrolled to display a very long schedule. "How long are you taking off?"

"Two weeks."

"We owe you about eight more weeks of leave," she murmured as she studied the scroll. "You've been overworking yourself. Take longer if you want to."

"I will consider it, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade nodded. "Go on, then. Just keep in mind that I might call you back if there's further development on the stone tablet. My slug summonses have nothing so far."

"My crows have nothing as well."

Sighing, she said, "We have to find the rest before others get to it."

"I will inform you if there's any development."

"Good. Now go."

Bowing respectfully, Itachi retreated from the office. He went home and quickly packed. He had two weeks to catch up with Sakura and bring her back to Konoha.

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They were in Sound once again and this time, Sakura hoped that she would have better luck at tracking her target. Everything that had happened over the last few weeks had made her lose the trail she'd been following and it was only through sheer luck that she had gotten this lead. It was not specific enough for her liking but at least she was moving in the right direction again.

Eventually, she would catch up with him. She did not know what she would do if she did not. Well, if it was really _him_ in the first place and not just her wishful thinking. The evidences so far had been hints rather than confirmed facts, after all. For all she knew, this whole thing had been a wild goose chase. One whole year wasted tracking shadows that did not exist.

"Finally a village!" Deidara declared exuberantly as they spotted wooden huts in the distance.

Sakura flanked across at him and grinned. Ever since the kiss they had shared a week ago in Earth Country, the tension between them had disappeared, much to her relief. They had not spoken much about it or the future but the fact that their attraction to each other was out in the open made things a lot easier to deal with. In fact, it did not seem like a big deal at all. Deidara still came up with outrageously suggestive remarks and she still smacked him upside the head when he did it. They were back to normal again, except for the occasional kisses when their hormones ran rampant.

"I hope there's an art shop, yeah," he muttered as he glanced about.

Walking straight towards the center of the village, Sakura said, "There should be one. This village is quite big, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Big enough to have those," he commented with a leer.

She followed his eyes and saw what was clearly a brothel disguised as a massage parlor. Rolling her eyes, she told him, "Yeah, why don't you go there and get your kinks ironed out?"

An arm slid around her waist and his voice reached her ears. "Maybe you can iron out those kinks for me, hm? That way, we can save up our funds."

Chuckling, she shoved him away. "What am I, your slave?"

"I wish." An unholy gleam appeared in his eyes. "I can imagine all sorts of positions to put you in."

She fought not to blush, but it was futile. Embarrassed and curious all at the same time, she tried to hide it by glaring at him. However, he only grinned at her knowingly, telling her that he was not fooled. Sometimes it was frightening just how well he knew her.

Better than her ex-husband.

She immediately shook the thought away, refusing to allow any thoughts of Itachi to intrude on the moment. He was in the past and she was adamant that he would remain there. She had decided that she would give this thing with Deidara a fighting chance and that was exactly what she would do. It was time for her to move on.

"What's with that face?"

She blinked at him. "What face?"

"Like you're getting ready for battle."

She scowled at him. "As if!"

He smirked.

An exasperated huff left her. "I'm going to get my blades sharpened. Want to come along?"

Deidara shook his head. "I need to get some clay, yeah. I'm down to my last lot. I'll find you when I'm done."

They split up and she went to the shop at the corner. As she walked there, she fiddled with the tanto she had taken out of her storage scroll yesterday. The weapon was not one of hers but something she had taken from the house when she had left Konoha. It belonged to Itachi, which was why it usually stayed in the scroll. Seeing it usually reminded her of him.

"Come in, come in!" the shopkeeper waved her in.

Smiling, she stepped into the shop. "Good-morning, Ojisan."

"Good morning to you too. And it _is_ a good one today, isn't it. Clear skies. So… How may I help you?"

She detached her tanto and set it on the chest-height counter between them. "Do you provide a sharpening service?"

"Of course, of course!" He pulled the weapons towards him and slid the tanto out of its sheath. Fingering the blade, he remarked, "A little blunt. Yes, yes, if you don't mind waiting, I can do it." He glanced up, gesturing to a board behind him. "The price is up there. Is that acceptable?"

Sakura studied the price list and then nodded. "That's fine, Ojisan."

His eyes then went to the Uchiha emblem and stayed there for a while. "Must be some big clan," he muttered.

"Oh, you've seen that before?"

"Yes, yes." He traced a finger around the fan. "This young man came in maybe a few days ago. A traveler like you because he sure dressed strange. Who wears huge purple ropes around the waist? Anyway, his katana has this on it. Looks like you're from the same clan. "

"Huh? Why do you say that?"

Chuckling, the man waved at her hair. "Same black hair. Same markings on the weapon," he said as he began to oil the blades in preparation to sharpen them. "Your cousin, perhaps?"

"You might be right." After a pause, she added, "Do you happen to know where he has gone? I might be able to catch up with him."

"Hm… He didn't mention. A quiet one that one." He frowned thoughtfully as he ran the gleaming blades over the whetstone. "I'm guessing he's heading somewhere wet. Fire or Lightning Country, maybe. His friend came in with a bag from that shop. Pretty girl." He paused and pointed out of the window at a shop which stocked outdoor gear. "She was carrying new waterproofs."

Sakura had to work hard to maintain her smile as the sound of metal scraping against whetstone continued. So he was not alone and he was with a girl. What the hell was going on?

"Maybe someone from that shop will have some idea."

"Maybe," she murmured.

Once he finished with the second kodachi, he cleaned them up and then handed them over to Sakura. She took her blades, carefully running her thumb against the edges. "This is very good, Ojisan."

The man beamed. "I'm happy that you're satisfied."

After paying the man, Sakura stepped out of the shop. For a while, she wondered if she should go to the shop opposite to try to gain some information. In the end, she decided not to. It would be pointless, because she had no idea what his companion looked like. She doubted that he was headed for Fire Country, so that just left Lightning.

Resigned to continue tracking him with minimal lead, she made her way down the street. The marketplace was noisy as the vendors were yelling at the top of their lungs. Usually, she would have stopped to grab a bite to eat but the information she'd just gained seemed to have subdued her appetite.

Who was he travelling with?

Ten minutes later, she felt a prickle of warning at the back of her neck. Years as a shinobi told her that something was untoward and a moment later, she realized what it was.

Someone was following her.

Keeping her steps even, she carried on moving until she saw a particularly busy street. Joining the crowd, she waited until she was near an empty market stall before she crouched down behind it, quickly creating a clone.

Leaving her clone to be followed, she backtracked and took to the rooftops. A short time later, she saw the person trailing her. It was a girl. And based on her white haori draping over her top and the red hakama covering her legs, she was a miko. Sakura frowned, a little confused as to why a miko was following her. It was not as if she had much to do with Shinto shrines at all.

The girl stopped suddenly and Sakura was certain that she had been noticed even though she had been shielding her chakra as usual. Deciding that it was pointless to remain in hiding, she dropped from the roof to her feet.

The girl turned around unhurriedly. She was beautiful, with long wavy red hair curling down to her narrow waist and cat-like eyes almost golden in color. She was average height but well-formed, curving in all the right places, making Sakura feel … lacking in many ways.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked warily.

The miko tilted her head slightly and studied her for a long while before answering, "Kagami."

Kagami. Not a very common name. A very odd one for a miko, in fact. "Why are you following me?"

"I'm not the one doing the following, I believe." Her golden eyes widened innocently. "Am I wrong?"

She felt herself disliking the girl instantly. That innocent look annoyed her. "What do you want?"

Those golden eyes narrowed slightly. "Perhaps I should be the one asking you the question."

Sakura ground her teeth together in irritation. "Get to the point. I don't have time to waste."

The girl smiled then. "You're looking for Sasuke, aren't you?"

000

A/N: Hope you've enjoyed the chapter. As always, please review if you could. Thanks!


	8. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Hello everyone! Thanks for reading and reviewing the previous chapter. Here's the next one.

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 7<strong>

**Beta: littleredcoat** (Thanks for all your help!)

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"You're looking for Sasuke, aren't you?"

Deidara frowned as he caught sight of Sakura's expression. Who was this Sasuke and why did Sakura look so surprised? Was the girl right and Sakura was looking for someone? He had only caught the tail end of the conversation having just caught up with them when he could not find Sakura at the weapons shop.

Now, drawing back to remain hidden behind the large boulder, he continued to listen.

"Well?" the stranger prompted calmly.

Sakura's voice was strangely devoid of emotion when she spoke. "What do you know about him?"

"I'll tell you once you tell me why you've been following us. And don't deny it because I've seen you too many times for it to be a coincidence."

"I need to find him. Do you know where he is?"

"I know where he is."

"Where?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that."

There was a tense silence before Sakura asked, "Who are you and how do you know him?"

He could not help but notice Sakura's possessive tone, which mean that whoever this Sasuke was, he was important to her. Was this the reason why she became a nukenin? Was this the target she'd been trailing for months, thinking that he was unaware that she'd been subtly steering them in specific directions? The whole idea that Sasuke was always foremost in her mind sent a quick and uncontrollable spike of anger shooting through Deidara.

"Kagami-san?" Sakura prompted tersely.

"We've been… together for a while," the girl admitted quietly.

"Where is he now?"

"Back at my place. Probably training as usual."

"Where is it?"

"A couple of day's travel." A pause followed before the girl, Kagami, remarked suspiciously, "You're assuming I'm going to take you to see him. How do I know you can be trusted?"

There was a sharp intake of breath. "You will tell me where he is."

"Even if I tell you, you won't be able to get it. My shrine is protected."

Sakura let out an exasperated breath. "I don't mean Sasuke any harm. He's an… old friend."

"How do I know your friend won't do Sasuke any harm?" Kagami asked.

"My friend?"

"The blond one. The one who looks like a girl."

Sakura coughed and Deidara glowered in affront. That bitch dared to say that he looked like a girl? To hell with staying hidden.

He leapt out from behind the boulder to glare at the girl, who surprisingly did not seem to find his sudden appearance odd. Which meant that she already knew he was listening all the while. Who was she?

"Watch what you say, yeah," he warned. "I don't look like a girl."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "You've been spying again?" she asked, sounding completely unsurprised.

Looking back at the now-smiling red-head, Deidara said, "She knew I was listening, yeah. She's not an ordinary miko."

"I didn't say I was. In fact, I'm rather skilled, if I may say so," Kagami pointed out, raising an elegant brow. Then she turned back to Sakura, "Back to our discussion before the rude interruption, erm… What's your name?"

"Sakae," Sakura promptly answered.

"Sakae-san. And…" When a pair of golden eyes focused on him, he suddenly felt looking away. Something about her eyes made him feel twitchy.

Deidara frowned. "You don't need to know my name."

"How uncivilized," the girl murmured.

Deidara crossed his arms over his chest. "What? You're a stranger. Who says I need to be civilized to you, hm?"

The girl's eyes narrowed and Deidara felt a twinge of unease at the threat he sensed behind those golden orbs. Instinct told him that this was no average miko, and having long since relied on his instincts he would not discard the warning carelessly. Problem was, did Sakura realize that or was she too concerned about finding this old friend of hers?

With a huff, the girl turned back to Sakura. "You said Sasuke is your old friend? I don't recall him mentioning someone called Sakae."

"You must have noticed that he doesn't talk much," Sakura pointed out dryly.

"That's true."

Sakura shrugged. "We knew each other in our childhood, that's all."

"So, Konoha sent you to find him?" Kagami asked. "That's where he is from, right?"

Deidara tensed when he noticed the shutters slamming down on Sakura's expression. Sakura had been keeping her relationship with Konoha under tight wraps and he wondered how she would answer this girl. What would she say to get to this Sasuke? Or had the girl hit the nail on the head and Konoha had actually sent Sakura out to find this so-called friend of hers? But that could not be right because Leaf ANBU would not be in pursuit to drag her back to Konoha. It made no sense. No, unless she was on some top-secret mission that no one knew about except their Kage, Sakura was definitely away from Konoha without their blessings. It meant that this mission of hers to find Sasuke was _personal_.

His glower darkened as his hands clenched into fists. What the fuck, yeah? He did not care about her past but her past seemed to be catching up with her lately. First it was that weird Leaf ANBU and now this?

After a long silence, Kagami murmured, "Perhaps I'm wrong. I don't notice a Leaf hitai-ate on you and you're travelling with an Iwa nukenin. Konoha wouldn't approve of such a thing, surely."

"If you know Sasuke is from Konoha, then why didn't you help him find his way back?" Sakura asked instead, her voice strangely calm. "Why not help him go home?"

It was Kagami's turn to look secretive. Deidara felt a pounding headache coming on. He hated these sorts of intrigue, yeah. Why couldn't these two just say what they meant and be done with it?

"What makes you think Sasuke wants to go home?"

Sakura tensed visibly and then asked, "He doesn't want to go home?"

The miko batted back, "Maybe you need to ask Sasuke that yourself."

"I would if I could talk to him face to face."

The two girls stared at each other for a long while, as if they were having some sort of hidden contest of wills. Deidara shook his head and groaned out loud. Maybe he should take off and let Sakura deal with this. But the miko was an unknown element, so it did not feel right to leave his partner here with her.

Finally, Kagami was the one who broke the silence. "Fine. I'll take you to him." Her eyes cut towards him. "Without your pet."

Deidara bristled at the insult. "I'm not her fucking pet, yeah. And she's not going anywhere without me."

Eyes not leaving the redhead, Sakura said, "I'm afraid my partner is coming with me."

Kagami frowned and then after letting out another huff, she nodded shortly. "Just muzzle him. His language is disgusting."

"Fuck you, yeah!" he deliberately spat.

The miko grimaced, her expression screaming of distaste.

"We'll leave now," Sakura insisted.

"Let's go then." Kagami gave him an odd look which seemed to suggest a hint of satisfaction, but he must have been mistaken because a second later, all he could see in her face was dislike.

He smirked. "What's with that look, yeah? I thought miko are meant to be pleasant and all that shit."

Shaking her head, Kagami took her eyes off him and walked away.

He turned to find Sakura watching him with an expression with seemed to be steeped in hidden meanings that he could not decipher. Perhaps she felt as wary as he was of this girl. Or maybe it was something else. Hell, it might well be something related to how finding her Sasuke would change things between them.

"What?" he asked tersely.

She only rolled her eyes. "Come on, Daichi."

_Daichi_? What the hell, yeah? She couldn't think of a better name for him?

Shooting her a murderous look which promised payback, he snapped, "Move on then, Sakae-_chan_."

The vein twitching on her temple made him grin but in the interest of keeping their fake identities intact, she simply huffed and walked away, leaving him to follow in her wake.

Deidara did not trust that redheaded girl, but he could not allow Sakura to just go with her alone. He knew that that was exactly what Sakura would do, whether or not he agreed with her insane ideas. This Sasuke was someone she'd been searching for over most of last year and maybe even before she met him so she definitely wouldn't ignore this lead.

It made him itch to remove Sasuke from the picture. And to do that he had to meet the bastard. The only consolation was that if there was something intimate going on with Sakura and her friend, she wouldn't have wanted him along. That would be plain stupid, considering the current state of their relationship.

000

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Sakura stared at the crackling fire in silence. It was cold but that was not surprising since they were so far east. She had drawn the final guard shift so she was relatively well rested after her short nap. Just beside her, Deidara was snoring within the enclosure of his voluminous cloak with one arm wrapped around her hip. On the opposite side of the small fire, Kagami was seated crosslegged against a tree with her eyes closed, for all intents and purposes, asleep. The girl was an odd one, she had to admit.

She could not believe that she had stumbled upon this, or rather, that Kagami had been suspicious enough to seek her out. Not that she was not thankful, of course. She'd wanted to find Sasuke after all. He was the missing piece of her past, someone she'd thought she would never see again. And she missed him so much.

She remembered how the three of them used to hang out together during missions and also whenever they were off duty together. Naruto would always be the loudest, but she knew that more than half of the time, it was Sasuke who'd egged the blond into overreacting. As for her, she usually mediated. It had been difficult when she had been a genin because they had been so much stronger than her, but once she'd been training with Tsunade for a while, it'd been easy to just toss them both in separate directions when things got out of hand.

Sighing out loud, she tossed another dry piece of wood into the fire. How she missed those days. She had been happy then. She still had hopes and dreams of all sorts of things. If anyone asked her at that point if she could imagine ending up a nukenin, she would have said no. Of course not. But things had changed all so quickly. Suddenly everything was thrown upside down and her dreams and hopes had been crushed along with everything else. And it all had started around the same time.

Once again, she was unable to stop the memories of one of the saddest time in her life from flooding her mind.

_Standing at the top of the Hokage Mountain, she stared out into Konoha, uncaring that her tears blurred the image. She could hardly believe that it was true but it had been weeks since the search teams were sent out to find him. And yet, there was nothing. So he was now branded missing in action, presumed dead. _

_Beside her, Naruto was seething. "I can't believe some of them are saying he defected!"_

_She turned to him with clenched fists. "Sasuke couldn't have defected! I know deep inside my heart that Sasuke wouldn't have done that. Why would he, when everything he loves is inside Konoha?" she cried. "They're just being stupid!" _

"_That's what I told them!" Naruto snapped. His eyes were damp with angry tears and chest was heaving with the effort of keeping his temper under control. _

_She looked around them, feeling lost. "I… I just can't believe he is gone," she said in a small voice. _

_Naruto placed an arm around her shoulders. "Neh, Sakura-chan. No one knows if he's dead. He's only presumed dead."_

"_Then why hasn't he returned?"_

"_I don't know, Sakura-chan. Maybe he's hurt." His features hardened. "I know if he can come back, he will."_

_Hope filled her as she took in his determined expression. "Maybe we can go out and search for him? Do you think Tsunade will allow it?" _

_A hint of red sparked in his eyes and he looked away, dashing away her hopes. Angrily, he said, "I asked. She said two teams of hunternins were sent out more than a month ago and they found nothing, so we probably won't be able to find him. There was no sign of him at all. It was like he had disappeared off the face of the earth._

_Or like he was really dead, Sakura added silently._

"_It's going to be difficult without him," Naruto muttered under his breath._

"_I miss him," Sakura said shakily. "I didn't even see him off when he left two months ago. I wish I had, but I was too busy training for ANBU. I didn't get a chance to say good bye. Or anything else…"_

"_He knows we care."_

_They fell silent for a long while, both lost in their own thoughts. _

_And then Naruto sighed and ran a hand down his face. "Let's talk about something else."_

"_Like what?"_

"_Something happier. How is the wedding thing going? I still can't believe you're marrying into the Uchiha clan." _

_Sakura sagged inwardly. Not particularly keen to talk about this, she shrugged. "It's being handled by the clan. I have very little input, actually. I suppose that's not a bad thing right now, since I can hardly focus on anything else but… Sasuke. But all this just makes me wonder if it is the right thing to do." _

"_What do you mean?" _

_She bit her lips and then admitted, "The wedding is in five months. Should we be even thinking of getting married when Sasuke is not here? It seems wrong." _

"_Sasuke would want it to go on. He wouldn't want you to cancel it." _

_She sniffed. "How would you know that? I don't think he knew that Itachi was going to propose, or else Sasuke would have said something to me long before it happened." _

_Her friend grinned a little, giving her a teasing look. "Sakura-chan, we know you've like him for months now. It's obvious." _

_She exhaled and then smiled softly, touched that her friends knew her so well. "I guess I do. It's just that everything seems to be happening too fast suddenly."_

"_Hey, if you don't want it to happen so soon, just tell Baa-chan. I'm sure it can wait another half a year or so."_

_She shook her head. "No, Naruto. The preparations are already underway. Anyway, I'm probably just being stupid because which woman could honestly say 'I don't want to marry Uchiha Itachi'. Especially when she has a crush so bad that even her usually oblivious teammates can see it."_

_Naruto gave her a playful glare. "Hey! Who are you calling oblivious?" And then he sobered. "Seriously, Sakura-chan, delay it if you don't feel that it's right. What's the rush, right?"_

"_No. It'll just cause trouble if I change things now after everyone's hard work." _

_Naruto shuddered. "Yeah, I saw you being swamped by those Uchiha matrons last week. So many of them. Not to mention Sasuke's uncles, and worse his father." _

_She grimaced. "Good thing Itachi has his own place outside the compound. Fugaku drives me up the wall. I can't imagine living with him day in and day out." _

"_Yeah, you're right."_

_She stared out into Konoha again, her heart feeling heavy. Even though Naruto tried to distract her, it had not really worked. Sasuke was too intertwined with their lives, and everywhere she looked she was reminded of him. That was not to say that she did not want to be reminded of him. It was just that she felt emotionally raw having to acknowledge that she probably would never see Sasuke again. _

She rubbed her eyes, swiping away the tears. There was no need to be sad now. Instead, she should be feeling hopeful. Because she would be seeing Sasuke soon, if Kagami's words were to be trusted.

The muted rays of sun began to thread through the canopy of leaves over them, signaling the approach of dawn. It was time to wake up the rest so that they could continue their journey.

A quick glance told her that Kagami was still in the same position. She'd been in the same position for hours. Was it a miko thing? Who knew? Whatever it was, Sakura knew that she had to be cautious around this girl. Deidara was right when he had remarked that she was not an average miko. Sakura could sense the swirl of power around the girl and the fact that she knew who Sasuke was made things even more suspicious.

Her gaze slid down towards Deidara, letting her eyes trace his face. His blond hair, streaked with a bit of dirt, covered an eye while the other fanned dark blonde lashes on his smooth cheek. Those slightly rounded cheeks always tempted her to reach out and pinch them, but she'd never given in to the urge. Somehow, it seemed too… personal.

She made a face. Surely it could not get more personal than kissing, a snide voice in her mind whispered. Their relationship had crossed that line a little more than a week ago but maybe her mind and emotions hadn't caught up yet. Sometimes, she even felt a little guilty afterwards, but that was just plain stupid because she had no reason to feel guilty at all. Her relationship with Itachi was terminated when she had left Konoha. And it wasn't as if it was even a _real_ marriage.

Sakura glowered at the unwelcome thoughts and at that very moment, Deidara's eyes popped open to focus on her.

"Go away, yeah," he muttered, and then sat up to stretch. "That sour face is not what I want to see the second I wake up."

Her scowl turned darker and with an offended huff, she stood up. Deciding not to bicker with him first thing in the morning, especially since Kagami was already stirring, she gathered up her belongings.

A while later, they were once again travelling.

Sakura glanced at the other girl not missing her slightly furrowed brows. Kagami seemed to be deep in thought. She wondered if the girl was thinking about Sasuke. What exactly was going on between them? Sasuke was never the type to let girls get close to him. He had despised his fangirls and as a rule, would avoid all girls to be safe.

Except when it came to her. But that was over long ago.

She bit her bottom lip as she turned her attention to the muddy path they were travelling along. Sasuke might have shunned girls in general, but he was still male. Kagami was undeniably striking and she was poised and calm, so it could explain why Sasuke wouldn't mind being with her. Travelling alone could get lonely, as Sakura had found out. Thank goodness she had Deidara with her.

She lifted her eyes to look into the distance, hoping that they would reach Sasuke soon. It had been years since she had last seen him. Not to mention she had so many questions for him.

The first and foremost being being why he left Konoha? Why did he allow Konoha to think that he was dead?

000

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Once Itachi departed Konoha, it had taken him nine days to pick up his clone's trail and locate Sakura. The Iwa nin had attempted to disable his tracking jutsu but he only partially succeeded. The tracking jutsu had enhanced the visibility of the chakra he had inserted within the other nin, and with his Sharingan activated he was able to locate the trail.

He had caught up with them near Yugakure just an hour ago. As he had been notified by the clone who had found them, there was a new addition to her group. He had not expected it to be a shrine priestess, but once he had been informed he had taken additional care to keep himself hidden from view.

Priest and priestesses' strengths and powers differed from shinobi's. Itachi had taken a brief study when he was younger, and from what he understood they obtained power from the mystical realm, whilst shinobi relied on their surrounding elements. It meant that the miko travelling with Sakura was likely to possess many techniques that Itachi knew nothing about. The risk of encountering the unknown was high if he was foolish enough to approach them now. He would not be making the same mistake again so soon.

The rest of the day passed with the group of three travelling across the country famous for its hot springs without stopping for long. Itachi kept a considerable distance between them, intending to wait until such a time when Sakura was separated from the miko and her other partner before he took any action. Only then would he be able to extract Sakura from the group without any notable confrontation.

It was midday when the group reached a thick forested area. By then they had moved so far east that the temperature had dropped significantly, especially within the forest where the sunlight hardly penetrated through dense conifers.

Itachi's senses sharpened as he studied his surroundings. Steam from small hot springs which dotted the land made the area look as if it was enshrouded in mist. But that was not the thing that had caught his attention. From this distance away, he could tell that the group had entered what his Sharingan told him was an area thick with mystical power. It seemed to be centered within a shield which made it impossible for Itachi to make out what was beyond. The miko was clearly powerful if she could construct such a notable barrier.

Itachi frowned thoughtfully. They would have to leave at some point. It was a matter of when. With that thought, he cast a mild and undetectable genjutsu around himself before he settled on a branch to wait.

As always, thoughts of Sakura invaded his mind. Based on their last interactions, it was not difficult to predict that she would not be receptive to him once he caught her. However, he needed her to open up enough for him to gauge her intentions before he came up with a strategy to explain her presence to the Hokage. He was not a fool. Even with Sakura's previous status as the Hokage's apprentice, it would be difficult for Tsunade to avoid sentencing her surrogate daughter. The council would demand Sakura to be punished as any other shinobi who left Konoha without leave to become a missing nin.

On a personal level, there were things he needed to speak to Sakura about to resolve matters between them. He had thought that he knew where things stood back then, but perhaps he had interpreted things wrongly. After all, none of the information he had obtained had been gleaned straight from the source. He had made more than one assumption to fill in the blanks, but the last time Sakura had spoken to him in Konoha, her words and actions told him that his assumptions might have been wrong.

Frowning, he thought back to a particular conversation he had overheard shortly after he had proposed to her. There were many reasons for him to hold back from the marriage, but he supposed that, ultimately it was this conversation that had been the main deciding factor for his actions.

_The two members of Team Seven were standing at the edge of the cliff, staring down at Konoha while Itachi watched silently. He was already there when the two of them climbed up, but with his chakra suppressed, they had not known that there were not alone. From their agonized expressions, it was clear to Itachi that they had just received the official status of Sasuke's disappearance. He had his own suspicions about what had actually happened. However, he would maintain silence as he had no solid proof of anything._

_Even though he was standing a long distance away, the breeze carried their voices to him. _

"_It's going to be difficult without him."_

"_I already miss him," Sakura said shakily. "I didn't even see him off when he left two months ago. I wish I had, but I was too busy training for ANBU. I didn't get a chance to say good bye. Or anything else…"_

"_He knows we care."_

_Their love for his little brother was evident from their tones. Itachi wondered if Sasuke realized just how fortunate he was that his team cared so much about him. They continued to speak about Sasuke but the wind soon picked up, making it more difficult for Itachi to hear them._

_Naruto sighed. "Let's..."_

"_Like…"_

"…_can't believe you're marrying into the Uchiha clan." _

_Itachi saw Sakura shrug before more broken pieces of her sentences reached him. "… Sasuke… makes me wonder if it is the right thing to do." _

_And he tensed. So she was already regretting her decision then. This only reinforced the decision he had made a month ago. When she had accepted the proposal, he had been stunned because he had expected her to refuse, seeing how she felt for Sasuke. It was simply unthinkable that she would accept for any personal reasons, so she must be taking the shinobi rules seriously, in that one should put the village before oneself. He then resolved to give her many opportunities to back out and if they did eventually get married, he would give her many reasons to dissolve the contract. Still, part of him hesitated to put things in motion. _

_He strained to hear more, but the wind was blowing in the wrong direction now, allowing him to hear only snippets of the conversation. _

"_The wedding is in five months. Should we… It seems wrong." _

"… _want you to cancel it," Naruto said. _

"…_Sasuke..." _

"_Sakura-chan… you like him… It's obvious." _

"…_I do..."_

_And there was the confirmation of her feelings for Sasuke, Itachi thought with a weary sigh. Hearing it did not make him feel any better. In fact, it only made feel somewhat ill. He deserved this unpleasant sensation, he supposed, considering that he was guilty of desiring someone who clearly belonged with his little brother. _

"_Hey, if you don't want… just tell Baa-chan..."_

"_No, Naruto. The preparations are already underway… don't want to marry Uchiha Itachi..."_

_Itachi felt something squeeze in his chest. Sorrow, perhaps? This should not affect him so much. It was not as if he was nursing any hopes. Was he? He had always known where he stood with her. She had shown him nothing but respect and professional courtesy when they interacted, and nothing more. _

"_Seriously, Sakura-chan..."_

"_No. It'll just cause trouble if I change things now after everyone's hard work." _

_A prolonged gust of wind made it impossible for Itachi to hear for a while, and then he heard Sakura say, "…I can't imagine living with him day in and day out." _

_And whatever hesitation he had harbored about his plan evaporated. _

000

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"We're here," Kagami announced.

Standing by a tall tree with two flat rocks decorating its base, Sakura looked up. There was a shallow stream winding around the base of the trees and curling around a steep hill. Steps had been carved into one side of the hill, rising up to a small shrine above. The afternoon sun shone brightly against it, making it seem as if the shrine was illuminated.

"This is your shrine?"

Kagami looked up at it with a fond expression. "It has been in my family for generations."

"And Sasuke is up there?"

Kagami nodded. "He's been living there for a while."

Finally, Sasuke was within her reach. Sakura could hardly believe it.

"Do you want to go up?" Kagami asked.

"Of course."

"You two go ahead, yeah," Deidara said gruffly, and then gestured to the stream behind the property. "I'll be over there for a while, yeah. Have some… stuff to tend to."

Stuff? What was he up to? Despite her anticipation of seeing Sasuke, Sakura had to refrain from stopping him. Instead, she said, "Alright. See you back here later?"

He smirked. "Miss me already? What will you do without me?"

Sakura blinked as his hidden message sank in. So that was what he was up to. Frowning slightly, she retorted, "Go then. I'll have much more peace without you mucking things around."

Deidara snorted before he brushed past them to head towards the stream at the base of the small hill. In moments, he was gone from her sight. Strangely enough, she felt a mild sensation of loss when he was gone. Just how attached had she gotten to him? What they had going on was supposed to be casual. This was the last thing she'd expected to feel just when she was so close to finding Sasuke.

Shaking the disturbing thoughts away, she turned back to the other girl. "Are we going?"

Kagami walked up the shrine steps. "Come on up," she invited. "Follow me."

Nodding, Sakura climbed up behind her. There seemed to be at least a hundred steps set in a steep hill, leading up to a shrine at the top. It was very silent, almost eerily so. There was no sound of happily chirping birds or anything like that even though the whole area was surrounded by a lush forest.

Feeling a little on edge, she surreptitiously ran through a series of seals and murmured, "Kai."

Nothing happened.

A little annoyed with herself, she let out a sharp breath. She was being paranoid, that was all. Besides, there was really nothing for her to be worried about since Deidara was staying down there as a precaution anyway. If she got into trouble up the mountain, he would think of something. He always did.

They were less than halfway up the numerous steps when a figure appeared at the top and proceeded to move towards them. Silhouetted against the brightness of the afternoon sun, Sakura could only make out a dark outline of a tall male.

Then, for a brief moment, the cloud masked the sun and the glare eased to reveal the figure. Stunned, she could only stare at the heartbreakingly familiar figure. He was a little older and leaner but otherwise, he seemed unchanged.

"Sasuke!" she cried out, dashing up the steps to close the gap between them.

To her surprise, he tensed and then stilled abruptly. Worse, his expression was cold and hard as he stared at her. Her steps skidded to a halt just a few feet in front of him, unsure and feeling just a little hurt.

And then he said, "Don't be overly familiar."

She went cold. "S-Sasuke?"

His eyes narrowed. "Who are you?"

000

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A/N: Hope you liked that. For those of you waiting (impatiently) for the ItaSaku to happen, it will. Very soon. As always, please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	9. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for your wonderful response for the previous chapter. Here's the next one. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 8<strong>

"Who are you?"

Sakura's thoughts came to a screeching halt. What did he mean by that? How could he fail to recognize her? When she finally found her voice, she blurted out, "W-Who am I? What do you mean?"

At this point, Kagami caught up with them. "What's the matter?" she asked.

Trying to keep her voice steady although she felt like panicking, Sakura explained, "He doesn't seem to recognize me."

"Are you sure you don't know this woman, Sasuke?" Kagami asked.

Sasuke frowned impatiently and then shook his head. "Yes. I'm sure I don't know her."

Sakura's eyes widened. "But…"

"I don't know you."

With that, he slipped past them and continued to descend the shrine steps. Frozen in shock, Sakura stared at the spot where he had been standing for a long while, trying to make sense of the situation. Her disguise was not so extreme that he would not understand who she was when they were face to face. Only her hair and eye color were altered but her features remained the same. It was impossible for him, her teammate for years, to fail to recognize her. There must be another explanation, she thought with a growing sense of dread.

Amnesia? It was the only thing that made sense. Was this why he had never returned to Konoha all those years ago? When he had not returned from his mission, he had been pronounced dead the way Konoha presumed she was dead right now. At least, until Itachi reported her to Tsunade. The cat would be out of the bag then and she would be in shit loads of trouble.

But right now, she could not think about that. Right now, she had to focus on Sasuke and why he could not remember her. If it was really amnesia, she needed to help him remember Konoha. How else could she convince him to return home?

Slowly, she turned around to be faced with his rapidly descending form.

A hand landed on her shoulder and Kagami said, "Maybe we should leave him for a while."

Sakura shook her head resolutely. "No. I need to talk to him."

Ignoring Kagami's impatient sigh, Sakura ran down the stairs until she caught up with the dark-haired man at the base of the hill. He stilled at her approach, but did not turn around so she moved in front of him. Out of the periphery of her vision, she noted that Kagami was just a few steps behind.

"What do you want?" he asked flatly.

"I just want to talk."

Irritation flashed across his features. "Kagami. Who is she?" he asked the other girl.

"I've only met her a few days back. She claims to know you. Her name is Sakae."

"And I said I don't know her."

"Maybe you should hear what she wants to say."

Shoving his hands in his pocket in that achingly familiar way, Sasuke said, "Speak then."

Keeping calm, she explained, "We know each other since childhood, Sasuke. We've been teammates for years. Something must have happened to make you lose your memories. Do you remember anything of your past? Do you remember Konoha?"

He eyed her suspiciously. "Konoha is in Fire Country."

Sakura's heart sank. He said it as if he was merely reciting a fact. Like Konoha meant nothing to him. "That's right. We're both from Konoha."

"I recall no such thing," he said bluntly.

"It's probably amnesia. Maybe I can help. I'm a medic."

Sasuke stared at her for a moment before flicking a glance at Kagami, who was eyeing him with open concern.

"Sasuke? Are you sure you don't want her help?"

"Yes, I'm sure I don't want her help."

Deidara appeared at this point and Sakura's gaze landed on him. He just looked at the three of them with an expression of mild disgust. She knew that he distrusted the entire situation but did it really matter now that she actually found Sasuke?

"So this is Sasuke, hm?" Deidara remarked, raising a brow at the silent Uchiha.

Sakura nodded. In a pained voice, she explained, "He doesn't remember me, though. I think he must have somehow lost his memories."

Deidara continued to stare at Sasuke assessingly, keeping strangely silent. Sakura wondered what was going through his mind.

Then Sasuke turned to Kagami. "I'm going out to train."

Kagami nodded. "We will be up in the shrine. Join us for tea when you're done?"

"Aa."

And then he was walking away again, leaving her to stare at his departing back with a sensation of longing and sorrow.

Deidara spoke up then. "Oi, Sasuke! You want to spar?"

Sakura tensed at the unmistakable challenge in Deidara's voice. Worried, she began, "Wait-"

"Tsk! I can tell that he's at least a jounin. I'm sure he can handle a little one-on-one practice, yeah. And I need the exercise. So what do you say, hm?"

Sasuke, who had stopped at Deidara's question, slowly turned around to regard the blond with a pair of stony eyes. Sakura felt a chill running up her spine. In the past, Sasuke had always taken any challenges thrown his way with the utmost seriousness. Now, it looked like he might be worse.

"Who are you?" he asked flatly.

Quickly, Sakura said, "This is Daichi. My partner."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "You said you're from Konoha, but you're not wearing a hitai-ate. And you're travelling with a missing nin from Iwa."

Sakura bit her lip worriedly, flicking a glance at Deidara's scratched-out hitai-ate. "Yes, but-"

"Oi, it's only a spar, yeah," Deidara interjected rudely. "Why do you care where we're from? Tsk! I'm getting tired of all this talking. So do you want to do it or not?"

"Why not," Sasuke finally intoned in a bored voice. And then he turned and began to walk away. "Follow me."

Kagami interjected, "Don't get carried away, Sasuke."

Sasuke nodded but he did not stop.

Sakura grabbed Deidara's arm. "Hang on…"

He shook off her hold. "Don't worry, yeah. I'll be gentle with your precious Sasuke. He will live."

She blinked at the hint of bitterness coating his words, unsure how to react to it. Yes, by now, Deidara had probably put two and two together and came up with the right conclusion. He must have realized that all this time, she had been searching for Sasuke. Considering the recent developments in their partnership, it was not surprising that he felt put out by her deception. But then what did he expect? Both of them had secrets. It had always been that way.

"Sasuke, maybe you should train in the field to the east," Kagami suggested. "That way, the villagers nearby won't be frightened by all your shinobi techniques."

"Aa."

Still silent, Sakura watched with a heavy heart as Deidara and Sasuke walked away and disappeared beyond the hill.

"Let's go up and get some tea while we wait for them to finish their male posturing, Sakae-san."

Knowing that there was nothing more she could do, Sakura nodded and followed Kagami up the steps leading to the shrine.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Deidara kept his eyes fixed on the dark-haired nin's back as he led them through the thick forest. There was something off about this guy. In fact, there was something off about this entire place. The atmosphere was all wrong. It freaked him out and all he wanted to do was to leave.

But he was not stupid enough to think that they were going anywhere without this weird guy. If Sakura had spent the last year searching for him, he must be someone important to her. He thought he had overheard her saying something about teammates earlier, so that might be it. When they were finally somewhere safe, he would push her for some answers.

Now, he needed to figure out what was going on with this guy.

Sasuke stopped once they arrived at a large clearing within the forest. Deidara scanned the area cautiously, noting that there were training posts set up as well as several other things which suggested that this area was frequently used. There were several tags and mirrors hung off the branches of the trees, presumably used as targets.

"We're here."

Deidara raised a brow at the dark haired nin. That blank impassive face was really hacking him off, yeah. The bastard looked like a fucking puppet with that face. What the hell was wrong with him?

Widening his feet in a stance, Deidara challenged, "Anything goes?"

"Why not?"

And that deadpan voice bugged him as well. Scowling, Deidara snapped, "Let's move, yeah."

In a flash, Sasuke was gone from his sight.

Adrenaline rushed through Deidara at the realization that this would be a good fight. He brought his hands together to execute a technique just a second before the gleaming blade of a katana swooshed towards him. Spinning out of the way, he flung out a handful of shuriken in retaliation before sticking his hands into his clay pouches. Sasuke simply sidestepped the basic attack. Darting forward, he swung the katana in an arc, forcing Deidara to duck and dive.

Deidara pulled his hands out of his pouches. Tiny clay birds spread out to encircle his opponent who, much to Deidara's satisfaction, looked surprised at the move. He would be even more surprised soon. It would have been nice to have a big blast, but he knew that Sakura would give him a lot of grief if her friend sustained major injuries from the bombs. Besides, killing Sasuke was not the reason he had proposed this spar.

The first explosion went off with a loud clap, quickly followed by successive ones. The other nin leapt and spun out of the way as each bomb went off. Even though the explosions were small, it would do enough damage to knock anyone unconscious.

And then one hit.

To Deidara's irritation, his target exploded into a cloud of smoke.

"Bunshin," he hissed.

A flare of chakra alerted him to the other man's position. Sasuke was approaching fast. Bringing his hands together, Deidara executed another jutsu just as two oversized shuriken flew towards him. He ducked but one of the blade grazed his arm slightly. At the speed they were moving, the injury could have been worse.

Smirking, he shouted out, "That's all you got?"

Sasuke flickered into view with both shuriken in his hands. "Enough to injure you."

Deidara glared at him. "It's just a scratch." He snorted derisively. "Shuriken. A genin technique."

Widening his stance and drawing the pair of shuriken back, Sasuke told him, "You overestimate yourself, Daichi-san."

Deidara was about to retort when the two shuriken whipped towards him. "Again?" he sneered as he leapt out of the way. "This is getting old, yeah."

And then as he watched, the pair of shuriken sped back around and headed for him again. The abrupt change in trajectory was strange, almost as if it was being controlled while it was moving in the air.

"What the fuck, yeah?" he snapped as one of the blades narrowly missed him.

As he watched, the shuriken returned for him once again.

"They tasted your blood and now they are hunting you," Sasuke informed him flatly.

Deidara decided then and there that he _hated_ this bastard. As he continued to avoid the shuriken, he dipped into his clay pouch and focused on shaping the appropriate weapon to deal with this annoyance. There was no need to hold back this time. A moment later, two large eagles were chasing after Sasuke's blades. Glancing over his shoulder, Deidara could see that his chakra-fuelled creation was faster.

It was all too satisfying to see the clay eagles finally catching up to the shuriken midair.

"KATSU!"

Deidara ducked as the explosion rocked the air and shook the ground. Grinning now, he straightened to survey the result. Some distance away, there were two pieces of bent metal. The other nin was moving towards it warily now, and Deidara moved to join him.

Frowning, Sasuke stared at what used to be his weapons.

"They were getting annoying, yeah," Deidara remarked smugly.

Sasuke slid him a stony glance.

Deciding that this was as good a time as any, Deidara asked, "So, what's the deal with you and Sak… Sakae?"

A slight furrow appeared between Sasuke's brows. "I do not know her."

Strange. He seemed to really believe it, Deidara thought. So this was not some kind of ruse. Because as much as he hated this dick on sight, he found it harder to think of Sakura being all miserable because her precious Sasuke just did not want to admit to knowing her.

"So you're just going to ignore her?"

Sasuke stared into the distance, seemingly lost in thought.

Deidara found himself wondering what Sakura would do now that she had found Sasuke. There were two possible scenarios.

One was that Sakura was actually on some undercover mission to find this man. But that theory sort of failed when he considered that Konoha's Kage would not be stupid enough to send hunternins after someone who was on an undercover mission. Unless, of course, the ANBU was acting all on his own without the knowledge of his Kage. This would fit in with the oddly personal questions he had been asking.

The second possibility was that Sakura had left Konoha illegally to find Sasuke because Konoha was not looking for him for some reason. If they really had been teammates, he could understand why Sakura had chosen to do this. She was the type to get attached to people and would risk her own life for them if it came to that.

Deidara felt a headache coming. Hell, he did not need all this. He should just walk away because which part of this was his business anyway? The only thing that would eventually affect him was whether Sakura would still remain his partner after this. It was simple, really. If Sakura chose to return to Konoha after everything, he would lose her.

And that very though sent his stomach plummeting in a free fall.

"It is growing late."

Sasuke's voice jolted him out of his less-than-pleasant thoughts. His contemplations broken, Deidara frowned up into the sky. It did look as if they had sparred longer than he had thought. The entire sky was darkening already and it appeared as if dusk was descending prematurely.

A sudden glint from his left caught his attention. The light blinded him for a brief moment when it flashed directly into his eyes. It was one of the hanging mirrors reflecting off the last lights of the day, he deduced absently as he turned back towards the other nin.

To his confusion, Sasuke's figure seemed to ripple and the next thing he felt was an odd sensation of dizziness. He had to fight to stay upright instead of giving in to the pull of gravity.

His senses immediately went on full alert.

Something was wrong.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Sakura stared out of the open shoji screen, admiring the small but carefully tended garden beyond. It was a very peaceful place, and she could understand why Sasuke had chosen to remain. She had been there for almost an hour, waiting for the two men to return.

The sound of shuffling footsteps drew her attention in the opposite direction to see a flash of red hair through the open shoji screen. Sakura smiled slightly as she turned back to the garden. After they had shared a pot of tea and a brief conversation about this place, Kagami had left her here to wait while she carried on with her daily tasks in the shrine. The redhead seemed very busy from what Sakura could tell from all the dashing about.

She reached out for her cup of tea, only to find that it was already cold. Pushing it aside, Sakura stood up and went to the shoji screen leading to the main shrine hall. Maybe she should go find Deidara and Sasuke to see how they were doing. She probably should not have let them go off alone without her, but she had needed some time to think about the situation.

Still, even after all that thinking, she had no idea how she could persuade Sasuke to return to Konoha. Without his memories, this shrine was more a home to him than the comparatively strange land of Konoha. If she was in his shoes, she would probably remain here. So how should she approach the problem? Naruto would probably bash Sasuke over the head and drag him back forcibly regardless of what Sasuke wanted. Was that what she needed to do to get Sasuke back in Konoha?

She sighed out loud. Maybe she should just talk to him first and see how things went. He might listen to reason. She could point out to him that being surrounded by familiar things would help in triggering his memories. Talking would be better than physically forcing him back to Konoha. The only thing she had to do now was to find him and have a conversation.

Just as she was about to step further into the main shrine area, Kagami appeared, bearing what looked like a tray of tea.

"I made some fresh tea," she said.

"Oh, I was just going to look for D-Daichi and Sasuke. They have been down there sparring for a long time."

"Sasuke tends to spend hours practicing his ninja arts," Kagami remarked with an indulgent smile. "But let's finish this tea first and we can go together. Besides, we didn't really get a chance to talk earlier."

Deciding that another ten minutes or so of delay would not make much of a difference, Sakura nodded and followed Kagami back to the small reception room. Once there, Kagami sat down with a relieved sigh.

"It has been a busy day," she commented as she cleared up the tea from earlier. Then she took the fresh teapot and cups from the tray to place them on the table. "But that's nothing new."

"Does Sasuke help you with the shrine things?" Sakura asked as she sat down on a flat cushion opposite Kagami.

"Sometimes," Kagami said. "He has been here long enough to pick up a few things."

Sakura decided to voice the question which had been nagging her for days. "How did you meet Sasuke?"

The redhead poured the tea carefully before she answered, "I still remember it so clearly even though it's been years since I met him. It was in Waterfall Country. I was on my way back from visiting a friend when I stopped to look at a waterfall. I feel silly now that I think about it, but somehow I slipped and fell in. I couldn't swim and I would have drowned if Sasuke weren't passing by right at that moment."

"He saved you then," Sakura supplied.

Kagami nodded as she took a sip of her tea. "He didn't have anywhere to stay, so I offered him a place at this shrine. Nowadays when I travel, he accompanies me." Smiling slightly, she added, "I suppose you can say that he's like my protector now."

Sakura felt a stab of irritation at her words. Was she jealous that Kagami had had Sasuke to herself all these years while Team 7 suffered without him? It was probably stupid of her to feel this way because clearly, Sasuke was whole and well under Kagami's care. Who knew just how bad things could've turned out for him with his amnesia if he hadn't found a home?

"He has never spoken about Konoha?" she asked.

Kagami shook his head. "I suspected that he might be suffering from memory loss, but I didn't think it was my place to ask."

Wasn't her place to ask? Sakura's mood soured further at that tone even though she was careful to keep her expression pleasant. Kagami sounded just like the type of woman suited to be married into the Uchiha clan. She had no idea why her mind was wandering in this particular direction. She had left that part of her life behind when she left Konoha. However, that might change soon if and when Itachi managed to catch up with her.

"Please drink, Sakae-san. Your tea is getting cold."

Sakura picked up her tea and sipped. She immediately realized that this was a different blend from the earlier one, which was a type common to most of the countries. This new one did not taste like anything she had before. Caution made her tense and she slowly returned the cup to the table. Call her paranoid, but she would rather be safe than sorry.

Her action did not go unnoticed.

"You don't like this tea?" the redhead asked.

"I think I'm just not used to the taste."

Kagami smiled. "It's a restorative tea with some herbs in it. That's probably why it tastes odd to you. I'll go get you the usual tea, shall I?"

Sakura shook her head quickly. "Don't bother. I should go find the boys now."

"You can find your way there on your own?"

She nodded. "I think so."

The redhead stood up and stretched. "Well, I'll see you later then."

Sakura did not think it was prudent to tell the priestess that if she could help it, Sasuke would be going straight back to Konoha instead of returning to this shrine. However, she had a feeling that Sasuke would not agree with her.

It was up to her to persuade him that he had to return. That meant that she had to return with him and face her past. With that thought, the flashes from one particular night returned to her.

_The celebrations for the wedding took a whole day, and now it was almost midnight. _

_Sakura sat on edge of the bed someone had made up with new sheets. She was in her new husband's bedroom in the house he shared with his brother. At least they were not staying in his parents' home. Now, that would be even worse. _

_Oh, she was so nervous that she could scream._

_Only, that was not what a proper Uchiha wife would do, was it? Over the past six months during their engagement, there had been no shortage of helpful advice from caring relatives, both hers and his. Most of those advices had been focused on the appropriate behavior and carriage expected of an Uchiha wife. _

_She supposed that was when the first twinges of doubt began to appear. Hard not to, since everything she had been told meant that she had to change herself practically inside out to accommodate the requirements of her future role. By that time, however, it was a little too late to pull out. _

_Besides, she did not want to pull out. Why should she when she was in love with her fiancé? Surely things would work out alright. She just had to give it time. She needed to let him know her, because even though they had Sasuke as a link in the past, he had not interacted much with her directly outside a mission. _

_The door swung open suddenly, and she jerked up in surprise. Her husband strode in, shutting the door behind him silently. _

"_Hello," she greeted shyly._

_He eyes met hers, dark and unreadable. "Hn." _

_Her eyes followed him as he went to the tall wardrobe and took out a change of clothes. Was he just going to undress right here in front of her? It was not as if she had not seen men unclothed before, but this was her husband. It was different. She felt a blush creeping up her neck. _

_He walked towards the en-suite bathroom, and to her surprise, completely bypassed it to move towards the door. _

_She chewed on her bottom lip nervously. "I… umm…" She trailed off, not knowing what she wanted to say in the first place._

_Pausing at the door, he inclined his head at the bed. "It has been a long day, and you must be weary. You should sleep."_

_She blinked slowly. Sleep? But… but this was her wedding night. Sleep was something she had expected to happen… afterwards. After the physical consummation of their marriage, at the very least. _

_Instead, her husband wanted her to sleep. _

_He meant well, she told herself. At least he cared, right? _

'_**Sha! Just jump him already!'**_

_Her inner self's contribution almost made her flinch, even though she should really be used to her reappearance. Still, maybe she could tell him that she was not that tired, but he might think her too forward. He was pretty reserved, after all. It was not as if there wouldn't be other nights. _

_In the end, she managed to force herself to yawn. _

"_You're right. I'm really tired."_

_He nodded, smiling slightly. "I shall not disturb you then. I'll bathe in my brother's room."_

_It was only long after he had shut the door behind him, leaving her alone in her marriage bed, that she realized that she was shaking and her eyes were burning with unshed tears. _

Sakura shook her head violently, wanting to remove the hurtful images. She hated how these memories still affected her after all this time. Even though two and a half years had passed since that day, it was still painful to remember how confused and disappointed she had felt. At that time, she had tried to convince herself that his treatment of her was a one-off thing, but when similar situations had cropped up and he'd continued to reject her, she had known that the marriage was a mistake.

It was over, she reminded herself. When she returned to Konoha with Sasuke, things would surely be different.

But did returning to Konoha mean for her and Deidara?

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Itachi kept his eyes fixed to the shielded area, even though nothing had changed for the past hour. He was beginning to wonder if there was something else he could do. This level of impatience was not something he was accustomed to but when it came to Sakura, he often found himself thwarted from his usual methodical ways.

It was then that a familiar crow flew close and landed on the branch in front of him. With an abrupt caw, the crow flapped its wings and then dissolved into nothingness. In an instant, information flooded Itachi's mind.

This crow had found an energy signature similar to the stone tablet segment they had retrieved in Wind Country. This time, it was in Lightning Country. Should he inform the Hokage of his findings now? If so, he would be recalled to Konoha to resume his duties. Perhaps he should hold off until he had retrieved Sakura. The tablet could wait for a few days, he thought, for once choosing to pursue something personal and ignore his conscientious nature when it came to work.

A few hours passed and it was already dusk before Itachi felt a shift in the air. A foreign power vibrated, making Itachi's hackles rise as he tensed in preparation for a confrontation. It was the shield, he noted as he straightened to his feet, his Sharingan flaring alive to take in the brilliant burst of energy.

The air seemed to shudder as the level of power in the vicinity of the shield increased and an odd pressure built up rapidly.

And then abruptly, it stopped.

Still tensed, Itachi scanned the area. The fog-filled area and the shield around it were gone. He could see clearly through the forest now and much to his surprise, there was nothing within the previously shielded area.

Except an unconscious body lying on the dry leaves.

Cautious that it could be a trap, he remained where he was and created a couple of clones to send them out to carry out a reconnaissance of the area. His clones came back a few minutes later, reporting that there were no traps. Satisfied with that, Itachi leapt off the tree branch and made his way to the prone figure.

It took him a couple of seconds to realize that it was Sakura in the dim light.

Fascinatingly enough, her chakra was still shielded even while she was unconscious. It must be second nature to her by now. Her hair, still jet-black instead of the original pink, was splayed out around her head, obscuring her face. He noted with relief that she was alive from the rise and fall of her back. It seemed that she was unharmed. So she would eventually awaken and when she did, the first thing she would do when she saw him was run. He needed to prevent her from doing so. With that thought, he reached into his weapons pouch and withdrew a length of thick, flexible wire. Taking care not to wake her, he shifted her arms and then bound them.

A moan left her lips just as he finished.

Itachi found himself holding his breath as her eyelids twitched. Slowly, those lids lifted to reveal a pair of brown eyes which immediately focused on him. The unremarkable color of her eyes seemed wrong in her face, and he found himself wishing that she would return her eyes to their usual color. Her jet black hair was unsuited to her as well. However, he had to admit that the disguise achieved its purpose. At first glance, it was difficult to associate this girl with Haruno Sakura.

The last time he had seen Sakura in her original coloring was that last night when her bright green eyes had sparked with emotion and her entire body trembling with suppressed rage. She had been magnificent as she lashed out at him for the first time, and had made him face the fact that his deductions were not always correct. He had learnt an uncomfortable lesson that day. And ever since then, he would always second guess himself. He was no longer fully certain that his conclusions were always accurate.

Horror flooded her face as he watched. Her eyes snapped left and right, almost wild in her panic. She seemed completely disoriented. Then she began to struggle as her chakra flared around her. Having anticipated this, he had made sure that the binding holding her wrists together was the type capable of blocking chakra use.

"What do you think you're doing?" she snarled. "Let me go!"

He merely stared at her, waiting for her to cease her struggles. When she finally did, her breaths were uneven. The fire in her eyes however had not abated at all. She was furious with him.

"Where did you bring me?"

He refrained from telling her that he had found her right here, exposed and vulnerable to the elements. Her reaction was curious. What was the last thing she recalled? And where was the Iwa nuke-nin?

"Get up," he instructed, pulling at the length of binding he had left dangling from her wrist to pull her up.

She stumbled to her feet ungracefully, glaring at him. As undignified as this was for her, it was easier than carrying her all the way back to Konoha. However, when he tried to tug her forward, she dug her feet into the ground and resisted.

"Let me go, Itachi!" she yelled.

He ignored her and pulled harder.

"I can't go back with you!"

"You can and you will," he told her resolutely.

"Please. Don't do this," she finally pled.

Her desperation reached him and he asked, "Why? Why is it so important that you do not return to Konoha?" he asked icily.

She stared at him mutely.

Disappointment and anger welled up within him and he had to fight hard to suppress the emotions. "I would never have thought you would willingly abandon your village, but I was clearly wrong."

Her eyes flashed with indignance. "I didn't abandon Konoha!"

"Then explain why you left."

"Isn't it obvious?" she snapped. "You expect me to stay considering just how miserable I was?"

He found himself unable to respond as guilt tightened his throat. But as guilty as he was for his part in the events which had unfolded, it still did not excuse her from leaving the village. There was no need for her to leave.

"Let me go, Itachi and I give my word that I will return to Konoha. But not now."

That was unexpected. His eyes narrowed when he realized that she must have some task she needed to complete out here. It suddenly occurred to him that Sakura might be out here with the full support of the Hokage. Sakura could be out here on a deep cover ANBU mission.

Sharingan activated, he asked, "Does the Hokage knows you're here?"

She looked away in response to his changed eyes. "No."

He could tell that she was not lying. "Are you out here on Konoha business?" he asked, even though he knew that she would never give out any information if she was truly undercover. His ability to discern truth from lie was enough to inform him of her answer.

"Look. Just let me go, alright!"

His lips tightened. So she was out her for a personal reason that had nothing to do with Konoha. "Why?"

She stared at him for a long while. And then finally, her shoulders sagged and she exhaled loudly. "Give me your word that no matter what, what I tell you will remain between us until I say otherwise."

He frowned inwardly as he mulled over her words. She could be asking him to betray Konoha. Still, Itachi found himself compelled to answer, "I give you my word."

She bit her lips indecisively.

"Why, Sakura?" he pressed.

Looking troubled, she closed her eyes. When she opened them again, the oddly unsuitable-looking brown orbs were pained. "Because I just found Sasuke."

Itachi tensed immediately. She'd _found_ Sasuke? His heart raced as a myriad of emotion crashed over him. His clones had scoured so many countries over the years without any success and she had found his little brother? Furthermore, if she had found Sasuke and his clone had found her, why had his clone not sensed his brother?

"Impossible," he murmured.

She glared at him. "It's not impossible. Sasuke is not dead!"

"I know."

She blinked in confusion. "You know? What do you mean, you know? You know he was alive all those years ago when he didn't return from his mission?"

"I've always suspected that he is alive," he answered carefully.

Bewilderment painted her features as she cried out, "Then why didn't you tell anyone? Why didn't you tell _me_? And why didn't you do something about it? If you knew he is alive, then why did you leave him alone for so long? Why didn't you look for him?"

"I did." Wondering how Sakura had found Sasuke when he had failed for so long, Itachi admitted, "Despite my efforts, I was unable to locate him."

She looked confused.

"Are you certain it is him?" Itachi asked, wondering if she had been somehow fooled.

A frown crossed her features. "Of course I am. He looks like Sasuke and talks like Sasuke."

"His chakra?"

The furrow between her brows deepened as she thought over his question. And then she shook her head. "Masked, I think. I felt nothing."

"It could be an imposter."

"But you said he could be alive."

"Yes." This was an unexpected development and there was only one way to confirm Sasuke's identity. After a brief pause, Itachi asked, "Where is he now? Take me to him."

"Somewhere to the east. He is training."

"Let's go," he said mildly, betraying none of the urgency that was now growing within him at the thought that his little brother was within reach. "Lead the way."

She turned and then began to walk with her hands still bound behind her back. He followed close behind her, where his position gave him a clear view of her tense shoulders. Needless to say, she would bolt the second he released her.

After a couple of minutes of walking, he asked, "Is this why you're wandering about as a missing nin instead of hiding?"

Her shoulders seemed to tense further. Her tone was clipped when she answered, "I just want to find him. You know why I left in the first place."

Yes, unfortunately he knew. As much as he understood her motives, Itachi could not help but feel stricken that she had been driven out of her home because of the ill-fated marriage. Even now, he still could remember the helplessness of her situation and how it had spiraled more and more out of control as time passed.

"Did Sasuke say why he left?" he asked, needing to change the focus of his thoughts.

Sakura stopped suddenly and then slowly turned to look at him. Itachi felt a sinking feeling appear within him at the pained expression on her face. Whatever she was about to say, he knew that it would not be good.

"Sasuke doesn't remember me," she said in a small voice.

Itachi's breath stalled. "He has amnesia."

"Probably."

Was that why he had not returned home? Or was it because Sasuke had yet to complete the task Fugaku had secretly set him.

"The training ground is somewhere to the east of the shrine, so if we get back to the shrine, I can get my bearings right. Sasuke and Deidara are sparring."

The urgency to see his brother to determine his condition for himself grew. "Shrine?"

Sakura frowned. "Wasn't that where you found me?"

Itachi studied her face, seeking signs of deception and finding none. This was odd. "Why do you think I found you at a shrine?"

She gave him an incredulous look. "Because one moment I was resting there, and the next, you got me here all tied up."

"I found you unconscious not far from here, Sakura," he told her quietly, trying to maintain control over his growing unease. "There was a shield around the area you entered with the miko and the Iwa nukenin. When the shield disappeared, you were lying there on the ground."

Sakura blinked at him disbelievingly. And then, slowly, she turned in a slow circle, her expression displaying utter bewilderment and her growing alarm.

"It was right here. The shrine should be right here. I recognize that tree with the two flat rocks underneath. So where… Where is the shrine?"

000

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><p>000<p>

A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for your wonderful response for the previous chapter. Here's the next one. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Chapter 9**

**Beta-ed by littleredcoat**

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><p>"Where is the shrine?"<p>

Sakura could feel alarm rising within her. Something was definitely not right. The shrine had to be here because she clearly recalled standing by this tree when Kagami had brought them here. The fact that she was now standing in the same spot staring at a level piece of land dotted with trees instead of a hill made her feel as if she was immersed in some kind of sick nightmare. The whole thing seemed surreal and she had to resist the urge to slap herself just in case this wasn't real.

And then it struck her.

Abruptly, she spun towards Itachi. "What is the meaning of this?"

Unfazed by her question, he regarded her silently.

"Is this one of your famous unbreakable genjutsu?" she asked, her voice rising with each word.

His brows furrowed very slightly. "I assure you that you're not under a genjutsu at the moment. You could have been earlier."

This did not make sense. She would have known if she was caught in a genjutsu. Besides, she had executed the dispelling technique when she had grown suspicious earlier. Her accusation against Itachi did not make sense either. Because as much as Itachi wanted to return her to Konoha, he would want to find Sasuke more. She was not as important to him as his little brother. So no, if this was a genjutsu, it was not Itachi's doing.

Her brain felt like it was about to explode. Her confusion about how she had ended up being tied up like this was foremost in her mind, but her concern for Deidara and Sasuke came close. Those two things were bad enough without her adding on the sheer panic that was buzzing right under her skin at the fact that she was now at Itachi's mercy. But she couldn't deal with the whole mess with Itachi now even though his very presence made it impossible for her to completely ignore it.

"So what's happening?" she whispered under her breath.

The last thing she remembered was waiting for Deidara and Sasuke in the reception room in the shrine. Now both of them were gone. What did that mean? Sasuke might have left with Kagami because he thought of her and Deidara as strangers and distrusted them. But how could Deidara's disappearance be explained? Did he follow them? Or did they force him along?

There was only one thing she could do.

"I need to find them," she muttered, wriggling her wrists in the attempt to loosen the bonds. These ties were not new to her and with time, she could probably get out of it. But time was something she didn't have.

"And how are you planning on doing so?" he asked mildly.

She frowned thoughtfully. Her best bet was to ask Naruto for help but she could hardly do it with Itachi standing right there. If she called upon Naruto, Itachi would realize that her friend had known where she was all along and had not bothered to report to Konoha. Something like that could be used against Naruto when the time came for Tsunade to pick a successor. She could not risk it.

She had to get rid of Itachi, _and then_ contact Naruto.

As if he had read her mind, he intoned, "Do not attempt to escape me, Sakura. I will simply find you again."

She ground her teeth together before darting a resentful look at him. "Look. Why don't you just let me do this on my own? I swear, I'll return to Konoha once I find Sasuke."

Maybe, she added inwardly. Returning to Konoha meant that she would face the consequences of her actions and she would have to deal with her actions and some even more unpleasant stuff. But that wasn't the only problem, was it? Returning to Konoha also meant that her partnership with Deidara would be over. Even though it was inevitable, she had avoided thinking about ending their association for months. And now, with their relationship taking a new turn it would be even more difficult.

"You forget that Sasuke is my brother. I will search for him," Itachi declared mildly, interrupting her troubled thoughts.

Unwilling to give in, she tried again, "Then maybe we should just split up and look for him. We can cover more ground that way."

Itachi's tone was dry. "I will not be leaving you, Sakura. Understand that I'll find you even if you manage to escape."

Great. Think, Sakura, think. But her mind came up blank She had no idea how to shake Itachi, and the longer she spent with him the more she felt she was about to lose her grip on things. This situation only spelled trouble. She needed to escape but he was too wary of her moves now for her to take any action. Her only hope would be some sort of distraction or to wait until he let his guard down. The latter was highly unlikely. Who had ever heard of the great Uchiha Itachi letting his guard down?

He had done so once, a small voice at the back of her mind whispered. He had been caught unaware once.

She gave herself a mental shake. No, she would not think of that time, she vowed resolutely. The important thing now was to focus on her current predicament.

"I really need to find both Sasuke and Deidara. Surely you can understand that."

There was an odd flicker in his eyes. "I will find Sasuke after returning you to Konoha."

"But you can't!" she protested vehemently. She did not want to return to Konoha, not just yet. "Let me help you find Sasuke," she offered quickly.

He eyed her thoughtfully for a moment before he spoke. "Your skills might be useful."

She felt a brief burst of pride at his acknowledgement of her abilities. A second later, it was replaced by disgust. Why should she care what he thought of her? When it had mattered the most, he had failed to take into account how she felt. And now it was too late.

Swallowing her bitterness, she agreed, "Yes, I can help." Looking into his eyes unflinchingly, she stated, "You'll need to untie me, though."

"No."

Frustrated, she snapped, "I need to find them! You can't expect me to go around tied up like this. How useful do you think I'm going to be to you without the use of my hands?"

"If you wish to have the bonds removed, you will submit to a tracking jutsu," he returned smoothly.

She glared at him. There was no way she would allow something like that to be placed on her. Once these sorts of techniques were placed, no one could remove them except the person who had placed them there in the first place, or if one knew the special way to disable them. Unfortunately, she had no clue how to remove a tracking jutsu. Which meant that Itachi would always know where to find her, and that was not acceptable. The alternative of being physically tied up like this was preferable, especially since she had a small chance of escaping the bonds.

When she continued to glare mutely at him, he continued, "I take your silence to mean that the chakra bond remains."

"It will attract attention."

"Not if you're shielded by a genjutsu."

She gave him an incredulous look. "You're planning on casting a continuous genjutsu on me?" The amount of skill and chakra needed for such a thing were not things she could comprehend. It only served to remind her of the gap between them.

"To avoid unwanted attention."

Knowing that she had reached a dead-end, she relented, "Fine." And then she frowned at him. "They have a bit of a head start, but searching for them will still take some time. Don't you need to get back to Konoha?"

"Not immediately."

What did he mean by that? His face betrayed nothing of his thoughts, as usual. She hated how it made her feel, like he could be thinking anything at all and she had no idea what it was. Worse, she would be subjected to this feeling of edginess the whole time as they searched for Deidara and Sasuke. How was she supposed to survive this experience in one piece?

"Look, I still think we should split up," she tried again.

"How do you think I found you, Sakura?"

Thrown by the sudden change in subject, she could only blink at him. In her panic earlier, she hadn't thought to wonder how he'd found her. Her mind had been filled with potential routes of escape. But now that he had brought it up, was he implying that he had been following them all this time?

"How?" she asked flatly.

He smirked slightly, the first sign of real emotion she had seen on him today. "If you wish to locate your partner speedily, it is best that you remain by my side."

She felt a jolt at his words, her mind conjuring unpleasant thoughts about the past before she latched on to the real meaning of his words. "You've been tracking us?" she asked incredulously.

"Aa."

What the hell? It was impossible. She had checked herself and Deidara just before they moved away from the Earth Country hideout two weeks ago and had found nothing which suggested that they had been tagged by Itachi. Instead, she had found the new clay tracker Deidara had placed on the inside of her boots. Deidara hadn't even bothered to hide it this time, considering the size of the smear of clay. He obviously did not care if she knew he wanted to keep tabs on her.

But if what Itachi said was true, then he would be able to find Deidara much faster than she ever could. It meant that they would find Sasuke faster as well.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to Itachi and said, "Let's go then."

000

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><p>000<p>

Several hours into their journey through Spring Country, the sun gradually disappeared down the horizon. It had taken him some time to pick up the trail of his chakra which directed them eastwards. Usually he saw his chakra trail as a translucent blue string which followed the path in which it travelled. This time however, this time the chakra trail appeared as broken wisps of blue, which suggested to him that there were some form of cloaking at play. He had lost the trail once so far, but fortunately it had not taken long for him to relocate it.

What was perplexing was that even though he should be able to sense Deidara and Sasuke's chakra, he had not done so thus far. Ever since Sakura and the Iwa nin had followed the miko into the shielded area, it was almost as if their presences were completely erased. If the miko was utilizing the same shielding method as they travelled, it meant that Itachi would never be able to detect their chakra. He could only rely on the tracking jutsu placed on Deidara.

The journey was made in silence so far. Even though such silence was something Itachi usually appreciated, on this occasion he found himself wishing Sakura would say something. In the past, she usually filled awkward silences with her cheerful words and sunny smile.

Things were so different now.

On a superficial level, Sakura was physically different from the girl he had known. Her clothing was black, the color favored by missing nins. Instead of the soft pink hair and bright green eyes, she had stark black hair and muted brown eyes. The contrast was unsettling, jarring even. He preferred her as she had been before.

As for her personality, this new Sakura was nothing like her old self. The bubbly personality and the idealistic outlook had been extinguished over the year she had spent in the Uchiha clan. Now, there was no sign of the dejected girl who had left Konoha. The Sakura walking by his side now was self-assured and confident. She had been strong in the past, but that strength was the product of raw skills. Her time as a missing nin only refined her abilities further. She was not someone to be taken lightly.

Even now, he suspected that she was plotting a way to escape from him. That could be one of the reasons for her silence, but he also suspected that she simply did not want to talk to him. This realization did not sit well with him.

He glanced to the side to find her frowning at the path before her as she walked steadily forward. All this time, she continued to maintain a generous two feet distance between them, as if she disliked being close to him. In the past, when she had only known him as Sasuke's brother, she had never objected to his presence. And when she had joined his squad later, she had not shown such aversion to his company either. It was only when things had gotten out of hand between them during their marriage that everything fell apart.

And he only had himself to blame for it.

His control over his emotions was broken briefly, and revealed the fool in him which yearned for closeness between them. And once again he told himself that it was impossible. Or was it? He was no longer certain. There were too many angles to consider and there were too many unknowns to factor in. In the end, he supposed that what he wished for was an explanation of what had happened that last time they had been together in Konoha. Something told him that particular topic was definitely not something Sakura would broach willingly. Still, there must be something he could say to ease this distance between them.

"Are you weary?" he asked, the words escaping his lips before he had the time to realize just how inane he sounded. Making idle conversation was not an area in which he excelled.

Sakura obviously thought so as well, for she eyed him with undisguised suspicion. "No," she replied abruptly before turning away.

The tense silence descended upon them again. Itachi sighed inwardly, deciding that perhaps it would be wiser for him to refrain from speaking lest he made the situation worse.

They reached an area particularly dense with hot springs and the accompanying steam clouding the night air. Much to Itachi's frustration, the steam made it increasingly difficult for him to keep track of the trail of his chakra. Keeping his eyes on the wisp of blue, he followed eastward until it disappeared from sight.

"Is something wrong?"

She was wearing a mild frown of concern. He was about to deny it but instead he found himself saying, "This atmosphere is not ideal for tracking."

She scanned the area around them. "But your tracking jutsu is still working?"

"Not perfectly," he admitted.

"Are we going to lose them then?" she asked worriedly. "Do you have any idea where they could be heading to if the trail disappears?"

Itachi wondered whether her anxiety stemmed from losing track of Sasuke or Deidara. It was most likely both. Turning his attention back to the tree-lined path ahead, he said, "I suspect they are moving towards Lightning Country."

In light of the information he had received from his crow, the direction they were heading towards gave Itachi some cause for concern. It was too much of a coincidence. He had suspected years ago that Sasuke had been tasked by Fugaku to find the tablet for the Uchiha clan, so was the amnesia just a cover? Was Sasuke in full possession of all his faculties and was in fact tracking down the stone tablet for Fugaku all these years he had been absent?

If that was the case, how was Itachi to protect his little brother from being prosecuted by Konoha for what was clearly a treasonous act? How was he to report anything of this event to the Hokage without getting both Fugaku and Sasuke into trouble? How was he going to protect both Sakura and Sasuke from their own foolish actions?

"Are we moving or not?"

He slanted a glance at her to find her scowling impatiently at him. The expression was not one he was accustomed to seeing on her, he realized. Back in Konoha, she had only ever been pleasant to him, despite his abominable treatment of her.

Recalling her question, he replied, "We will rest here until dawn."

Her scowl darkened. "This isn't the time to rest. What if we lose the trail? Let's carry on."

Giving her an implacable look, he said, "We'll move at dawn." Which was only several hours away. "Besides, the trail is indistinct from here onwards."

She opened her mouth to protest but her jaw clamped shut before she said anything. Exhaling loudly, she turned away from him and settled at the base of a tree just next to a steaming hot spring. Without another word, she pointedly turned her face away from him and shut her eyes.

With an inward sigh, Itachi chose a spot where he could clearly see her and settled down to rest. His lips quirked slightly when he realized that he was watching her again. He had spent so much time watching her in the past which in hindsight was foolish of him. Things might have turned out better if he had simply confided in her. Ironically, now that he was willing to talk, she did not trust him enough to do the same. The situation had been the opposite before she left Konoha.

Closing his eyes, he allowed himself to remember one day when he had deliberately followed her to check on her well-being.

_Months had gone by since the wedding and with each day that passed he grew more and more troubled. He had not expected Sakura to hold out this long when it was clear that she was miserable. Even though he was almost never in Konoha, he could tell that she was unhappy. _

_She had never noticed that he had been watching her, monitoring her. He had always painstakingly made sure that she would never find out. It would not do to allow her to suspect that he cared for her well being and happiness. Such a thing would defeat his purpose in driving her away. _

_This morning, hidden from view behind a large stone sculpture with his chakra masked, Itachi followed the movement of the pink-haired kunoichi as she exited the convenience store within the Uchiha compound. A couple of Uchiha girls paused briefly, before snickering and turning away. Sakura's shoulders slumped slightly in reaction before she noticeably forced herself to straighten and walk away. _

_Outside the apothecary, an aproned elderly lady intercepted her. Sakura smiled at her, but there was wariness in those green eyes. _

_He was close enough to hear the elderly lady say, "Take this, Sakura. It might help."_

_Sakura took it. "What is it for?" she asked politely. _

_The elderly lady lowered her voice, but not low enough that passersby could not hear. A good number of Uchihas heard her say, "Herbs for fertility."  
><em>

_Sakura winced visibly, while Itachi closed his eyes with a pained sigh. The elderly lady meant well but this was certainly getting out of hand. _

_Incredibly, the only thing Sakura in response to the lady's words was, "Thank you, Uchiha-san. You're very kind."_

_The elderly lady patted her arm before she disappeared back into the apothecary. _

_Sakura stood staring at the packet of herbs in her hand. Then she placed it in her basket with the rest of her purchases, and continued to walk with her head held up proudly. But it was clear that she was upset from her white-knuckled grip on the basket. _

_Itachi retreated back into the shadows. This was not the pink-haired girl he had known. This was not the kunoichi he had taken on in his squad for her ANBU practical training. Before this entire debacle of a marriage had begun, he had admired her feistiness and exuberance. Perhaps even her frequent outburst of temper, for displays of emotion were something that he had to suppress more often than not. She had been full of life and she had been happy. The Sakura he had known would have told everyone to mind their own business and most likely thrown their insults back at their faces. She was also a formidable kunoichi, a fact that most people in the Uchiha compound seemed to have forgotten. One who rivaled Tsunade in skills. Skills which were now completely wasted in the Uchiha compound._

_He could see that she was trying her hardest to fit in, but Sakura was not suited so such a life. It was clear that she was suppressing her true personality. She had not been brought up to accept that her main purposes in life were to be a good wife and a good mother to her children._

_Why had she not annulled the marriage as he had predicted? Surely she had enough reasons to do so by now. He was not able to break off the commitment they made to each other for two reasons. First, if he made the move, she would be shamed because Konoha would see it as if he had discarded her. Secondly, he couldn't afford to risk Fugaku's displeasure, which would then throw into question Itachi's own. And he needed the clan to think that he thought of the clan first and his own needs last. He needed the clan to be on his side to ensure that they did not resurrect that horrifying idea of a coup again. _

_Even though years had passed since then, he still felt a chill at the recollection of the council's proposal to exterminate the entire Uchiha clan. Against all odds, he had managed to convince them that Fugaku could be persuaded to back down, and that the only thing that was required was for the administration to offer the Uchiha something that convinced them of it. The Sandaime had understood his intentions. In the next meeting with the Uchiha, he had hinted that the Hokage was the strongest shinobi in Konoha and with Itachi's skills, he was certainly in the running. _

_Fugaku had no notion that by backing down, he had saved the lives of all in his clan. _

Itachi shook the memories away, even knowing that they would resurface against his will. He had done all he could to maintain peace but it was a tenuous one. The Uchiha were once again growing restless and, much as he disliked to admit it, greedy.

And it was up to him to make sure that the council did not propose the extermination of his clan again.

000

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><p>000<p>

Sakura cracked open her eyes.

This was more than a little risky, she thought as she peered through the slits of her eyes at Itachi, who appeared to be asleep. He had cast a genjutsu to hide her, but it also meant that he would be attuned to her every movement. She was certain he was not unaware of this fact.

She had a plan, but she would need to be doubly careful. Keeping that thought in mind, she very gradually circulated her chakra. See, what Itachi probably hadn't realized was that she was close enough to the Hokage to be privy to a lot of confidential information, and one of those pieces of information was the characteristics of the chakra bonds used by the Konoha ANBU. The chakra bond activated when there was a sudden upsurge in chakra in the restrained individual, and when that occurred it would work to block the chakra pathways completely. So long as one's chakra level did not increase abruptly,the bonds remained dormant.

"It was a painfully slow process which required precise control of one's chakra, and even with her above-average skills Sakura had to focus all her attention on her chakra network to make sure most of it was gradually directed to her wrists. It would not do to end up with her entire body glowing with energy because _that_ would definitely gain Itachi's attention.

After what seemed like forever, she finally managed to gather enough chakra to slowly stretch the bonds. She struggled to keep her keep her breathing even, but it was difficult with all the effort she was expanding to release her wrists. Her eyes slid to Itachi and stayed there, needing to know that he was still asleep. His chest was rising and lowering evenly but he could be faking it. But why would he? It was not as if he suspected her of being able to get out of the bonds, right?

Eventually, the chakra bonds loosened enough to simply fall off her wrists without her moving a single muscle. She kept her breathing steady, not wanting to alert Itachi. Her entire body was flooded with chakra now, ready for her to move on to the next step in her plan.

Speed. Speed was what she needed now, she told herself as she mentally prepared for the next step in her plan.

In less than two seconds, her hands were flipping through the seals for a teleportation jutsu.

And she was gone.

000

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><p>000<p>

Itachi's eyes snapped open at the sudden flare of chakra to find Sakura missing from where she had been resting. Jumping to his feet, he studied the empty spot with a sinking sensation.

What had he expected? She had made no secret that she wasn't willing to travel with him, even if he could assist in finding Sasuke and her partner. It was just another proof that she did not trust him. Lips thinning in irritation and self-loathing, he activated his Sharingan to study the area. The chakra bonds were resting at the base of the tree, clearly useless considering their frayed state. How had she managed to remove them at all? He had to find out because if she could escape from the bonds, so could someone else with the right knowledge.

And then his Sharingan picked up the telltale signs that she had teleported away.

With a few deft twists of his fingers, a murder of crows exploded into existence and spread out upwards in the sky. Five minutes later, he received information of her whereabouts and did not hesitate in transporting himself there immediately. He appeared some miles to the east of where they had been and immediately caught her trail. She was still heading eastwards and was about half a mile away from him.

He gave chase.

It did not take him long to come to the conclusion that tracking Sakura was not an easy task. The Sakura his crow had detected was only a clone, something he should have suspected because his crow had recognized her chakra signature and the real Sakura had never revealed this in the entire time of their travel. Her chakra control was so good that her masking never wavered.

Annoyed with his uncharacteristic mistake, he dismissed the crows and created two clones instead and then sent them out in opposite directions to find her. She could be anywhere by now.

It took him the rest of the night to pick up her trail. Dawn had arrived when his Sharingan finally noticed a faint sign of her chakra which betrayed the location where she had appeared from the teleportation jutsu and from there, there was a faint streak heading north-east. The fact that she had let slip so much meant that her chakra supply was dwindling and was causing her to lose control. It did not surprise him considering the amount of chakra she had used to teleport herself so far east. Still, her weariness would only benefit him, as it would only mean that it would not take long for him to catch up with her.

Half an hour later when the trees in the landscape had given way to a terrain filled with pebbly high and low lands, he caught sight of a streak of black. He immediately made a beeline for her. She was faster than she had been back in Konoha, but despite the improvement he was gaining on her. Even without a single backward glance, she obviously knew that he was right behind her, because suddenly her chakra flared and she surged forward faster, lengthening the distance between them once again.

Foolish girl, he thought as he directed chakra to his feet, feeling his own chakra store deplete further. The crows he had summoned, the clones, keeping his Sharingan active, and all his teleportations were taking their toll as well as keeping his Sharingan active were taking their toll on his system. At the rate she was going, she would exhaust herself completely and leave herself completely vulnerable or even in danger of passing out. Was she truly so desperate to escape him that she wouldn't think twice about harming herself in the process?

Boosted by chakra, he finally caught up with her with a lunge and tackled her down. Her breath left her in a harsh exhale as she struggled and rolled to avoid his grip. Gritting his teeth, he followed her movements in an attempt to get a hold on her limbs. If he wasn't so concerned about giving her more reason to despise him, he would have simply knocked her out.

"Let me go, Itachi!" she hissed as she jumped to her feet, briefly disbalanced as the loose pebbles and rocks under her shifted.

He stood up and lunged again, only to suck in a pained breath as her elbow met his ribs. "Stay still," he bit out, aware that they were precariously close to the edge of the cliff they were standing on top of. "Why are you being so stubborn?"

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" she snarled as she twisted.

"Don't be foolish," he grated, his patience waning.

Just as he managed to clamp a hand on her arm, she twisted and the smooth pebbles beneath them gave way. Sakura let out an alarmed shriek as both of them fell. Without any chakra left to aid her, she was unable to keep her footing. And neither could he.

The next thing he knew, they were both rolling down a steep slope.

He curled around her, wrapping both arms around her as they slid and rolled down amidst the hard rocks and pebbles. She continued to struggle against him. A small fist glanced off his cheek and he winced, but he did not relent. Without chakra to stop their tumble downwards, he could only hold her as they continued to be dragged down by gravity.

By the time they skidded to a stop at the base of the hill Itachi's entire body was throbbing. As he glanced down at Sakura, he thought it was just was well that she was now unconscious. The exposed skin on her face and arms were streaked with cuts, and considering the way he felt he was certain that those were not her only injuries.

And then her eyes snapped open.

Before he could move out of the way, her fist met his jaw with a loud crack, and sent a burst of pain radiating across his face. With a loud hiss, he clamped his hands around her wrists and pinned her down to the ground with the rest of his body.

"Do not move," he warned, having had enough of her defiance.

He could feel the pressure of his Sharingan straining his eyes as he stared down at her and fought to keep his own temper under control. She was breathing hard, and glared up at him with wrong-colored eyes.

"Or what?" she spat back in challenge. "What will you do? Knock me out with your Sharingan?"

His jaw clenched. With some effort, he maintained a calm tone when he told her, "I do not wish to fight you."

"Then what do you want?"

Itachi tensed at the question while something in his chest clenched. What did he want? He wanted what he'd assumed he could not have, because he had thought that she belonged to Sasuke. His feelings had disgusted him because they were wrong but he could not seem to stop it. He had done everything he could to prevent himself from acting on it back then. But since then he had come to understand that he was mistaken.

How about now? What if he acted now? What if he showed her that he was not indifferent to her?

What would she do then?

000

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	11. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for all your reviews for the previous chapter. Here's the next one. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 10<strong>

**(Beta: littleredcoat) **

Sakura's heart thumped hard and fast as she stared up into Itachi's blazing red Sharingan. Pinned under his greater weight with her breath squashed out of her, she could only gasp one shallow breath after another as her panicked mind tried to think of a way to get out of this predicament. She could not let him capture her again, because he would do worse than use the chakra bonds on her since he knew that she was able to break them.

So what should she do?

As they continued to stare at each other, she felt the panic turn into something else. Fear, she thought with a gulp as the three black tomoe in Itachi's eyes began to swirl. She had seen them do this when he was particularly stressed or angry. But this was the first time such an expression was directed at her. Had she pushed him too far? Far enough for him to ignore their earlier agreement and drag her back to Konoha and dump her in a holding cell? She would face trial for her defection but what concerned her most was her shishou's disappointment.

She hated this situation. The escape had taken its toll on her, leaving her with no option but to lie here in this vulnerable position. She was so low on chakra that to use the last of it to force him off at this point would be suicide. There was only one option left for her to pursue.

Negotiation.

Her throat seemed to be closing in on itself, but she forced herself to speak. "L-look, maybe we can discuss things…"

Her voice trailed off when his eyes narrowed. However, the swirling of the tomoe seemed to slow, much to her relief. But she knew from past experiences that with Itachi, it was difficult to guess what was going on in his head. The slowing of the tomoe could indicate that he was about to execute some devastating technique, or it could mean that he was experiencing some very strong emotion.

"Let me up," she asked quietly.

He said nothing and his unblinking stare was beginning to unnerve her. She willed herself to breath normally, refusing to let him know how much he was affecting her. It was probably useless, because if anyone was perceptive, it was Uchiha Itachi.

Except he had never been particularly perceptive when it came to her, had he? In fact, he had been exceptionally dense when it came to her feelings for him. Either that, or he had just decided to ignore all the overtures she had made toward him over the course of their marriage.

"Not yet," he murmured.

Not yet? What the hell was he up to?

When she opened her mouth to protest, his eyes went to her lips and she stilled in reaction. As if hypnotized, she remained suspended in what felt like an alternate reality where she watched with bated breath. He was so close to her that she could feel the warmth of his breath on her lips.

She sucked in a trembling breath, only to have it catch in her throat as he moved closer. The next thing she knew, his lips made contact with hers and she told herself to remember why this was a bad idea. His lips were moving firm against hers, coaxing her to respond and urging her to give in to everything she was holding back and more. She clamped her lips tight and tried to ignore the yearning rushing forth. Holding back only made her want more, but at the same time the voice of sanity was yelling out that she would never forgive herself if she relented.

He pulled away suddenly. In her muddled mind, she thought that she saw a flash of uncertainty in his expression, but it was so brief that in the next blink of her eyes, it was gone. Shock rendered her unable to form words for a while, but when her mind finally decided to function again she reared back to glare incredulously at him.

"What the hell was that?" she snapped.

He treated her to another one of his infamous stare again, once which indicated that she already knew the answer to the question, and she was foolish to even bother asking.

This must be one of his notorious mind games. Did he really think that she would fall for this? Shaking her head vigorously, she bit out, "No! I'm not playing this game with you. You don't get to hold back and watch me make assumptions based on that stupid non-expression on your face. And if you think that kiss is some way of seducing me to do everything you say, then you're sorely mistaken."

His eyes flickered momentarily, and then he pulled away to sit down beside her. She immediately stood up. The sudden absence of his weight upon her made her feel as if she'd lost something, but she was clearly being idiotic. At least she was able to breathe a little easier now that he was staring into the distance instead of at her. Unfortunately, even without his eyes on her she could not attempt another escape. She was far too drained to even think of it. And to be honest with herself, she was more concerned about what had just happened a minute ago than forming escape plans.

"I did not intend to seduce you."

She huffed derisively. "Then you mind explaining yourself?"

He went silent.

"Well?" she prompted tersely, watching him intently.

His hands clenched momentarily before he confessed, "I wanted the contact. It's fairly obvious that I'm attracted to you."

She jerked in surprise. "W-What?" she sputtered. She couldn't have heard what she thought she'd heard. What was he up to now?

Still seated on the ground, he flicked an impatient look at her before turning away again. "I don't think it is necessary to repeat myself," he said stonily.

Staring down at him in disbelief, she repeated slowly, "You're attracted to me?" And then the past rushed back and disbelief turned into anger. "Is this a recent development that I was unaware of? Like it happened while you were hunting me down over the past few weeks? Is it the chase that got you all fired up? Because this so-called attraction sure wasn't there back when we were married. Or else you had a very strange way of showing affection."

His lips tightened briefly but he did not meet her eyes. Instead, he said, "I had reasons for what I did."

"And what are the reasons?" she demanded, not knowing whether to believe him or not. This conversation was growing stranger by the minute.

He shook his head once. "I do not wish to discuss it."

She huffed derisively, pushing aside her disappointment. "Of course not. Because this is just a lie you made up to make it easier to drag me back to Konoha, right? Oh, look, throw a little affection to the attention-starved Sakura and she'll follow you anywhere like a hopeful puppy, right? Well, too bad it won't work."

This time, he turned to her fully. At first glance, his expression seemed as stoic as ever but his now-dark eyes were flinty, betraying his displeasure. "That's not my intention, Sakura. Do not accuse me of such a reprehensible act."

"You refuse to explain yourself and now you're offended? That's just great! You know what? I don't care!" She threw her hands up in the air. Why were they even discussing this? It was pointless and it had almost nothing to do with the present. What they felt for each other was irrelevant now. There was nothing binding them together, contractually or otherwise. "I'm going to forget everything that had happened in the last half an hour and I suggest you do the same. There are other more important things for me to think about now. I don't want to know why you did what you did, or how you feel about me. This is all in the past anyway."

He frowned as if dissatisfied with her response. "I will explain when it is appropriate."

She glanced away. "Don't bother. I've moved on anyway."

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Itachi tensed. She had moved on? What exactly did she mean by that?

"Perhaps you wish to clarify that statement," he remarked mildly, trying to mute his growing anxiety.

"You know what it means." She scowled at him. "You're not so dense, surely."

"Deidara."

A brief moment passed before she acknowledged. "Yes."

His heart clenched even though this was not unexpected. He might have interrupted them weeks ago, but since then they had an abundance of opportunity to continue where they'd left off. Deep inside, it was not hard to comprehend the progression of their relationship. It was natural for a strong bond to develop when two people remained together for a long period, relying and trusting each other on a daily basis. And when the two were of opposing genders, a deeper attraction could easily form.

This explained why he had received no response from her earlier. As intent as he had been on the kiss, it had taken him a while to notice that she was not reciprocating. He had pulled away in shame and regret, and with a sinking sense of dread he realized that she was rejecting him.

The fact was Sakura had chosen, and her choice was not him. However, knowing the facts did not make it easier for him to accept the situation. Truthfully, all he felt now was a pressing compulsion to hunt down the Iwa nin to remove him from the equation altogether. However, that was a move that he could not make, because if Sakura disliked him now she would hate him if he harmed those she cared about.

She exhaled loudly, drawing him away from his thoughts. Brows furrowed, she asked, "What do we do now?"

What indeed. Her dismissive attitude towards his earlier overture was galling. But perhaps she was right. His primary focus should be on finding Sasuke instead of repairing the damaged relationship with Sakura. Their relationship was not something that he could fix in a day. It would require time. And time was what they had while they tracked Sasuke and Deidara down.

Still, he had to find a way to avoid having to keep an eye on Sakura every minute of the day lest she attempted to escape again. It was not possible for him to continue to maintain a constant watch on her after all. It looked as if a compromise might be in order.

Turning to her to find her chewing on her bottom lip thoughtfully, he asked, "May I propose a solution to our predicament?"

She gave him a suspicious look. "Go on."

"We will find them faster if we cooperate but that requires trust. If I give you my word that I won't report or return you to Konoha until after Sasuke is retrieved, will you agree to cease your escape attempts?" he asked.

"Will I be bound still?" she returned.

From what he could tell, the bonds were useless on her. Making a mental note to ask her how she had escaped the chakra bonds, he responded, "If you promise not to run, the bonds are not required. Besides, they appear to be ineffective on you."

Her lips quirked smugly. "I have my own little tricks. And no, I'm not telling you how I did it." Sobering, she added, "And you will give me your word that you won't apply a tracking jutsu on me?"

Knowing that he had to gain her trust, he nodded. "Agreed."

A thoughtful look crossed her face. "One last thing. Give me a week after Sasuke and Deidara are both found before you report me or attempt to bring me back to Konoha and we have a deal."

He tensed. "You said that you will return once Sasuke is found," he reminded her mildly.

She glared at him. "Of course I did. Anyone can lie under duress. It's different now. Now we're going to compromise. No bonds or tracking jutsu and that one week of freedom after they are found in exchange for my full cooperation with this search."

A week? She could be anywhere in a week. Was she so desperate to remain away from Konoha? Her words yesterday about returning to Konoha had been only a lie to distract him? But he could always find her again. Now that he knew that she was still alive, he could find her.

"We have an agreement then."

He raised a brow in question when she looked a little surprised and perhaps a little uncertain. Had she expected him to object to her requests?

"Fine," she muttered. "But let's do this properly."

"As in?"

"A contract."

So she did not trust him to keep his word. Despite being slightly offended, he did not find her suggestion unwelcomed. Sadly, it demonstrated the lack of trust they had in each other, which was a far cry from what it had been like before he had proposed to her.

With a nod, he reached into a pocket in his vest and extracted a storage scroll. It took him less than a minute to find the contract scroll. Squad and team leaders usually carried a few of these and used them with informants and spies to ensure that everyone remained honest. With a flick of his wrist, he unfurled the scroll on the ground and took a kunai out of his pouch. A quick slice followed and his blood dripped down. Wordlessly, Sakura did the same. Their mingled thick red color stood out starkly against the white background. He wondered if she recalled the last time they had stood over another similar scroll.

When she looked up, Itachi nodded for her to proceed.

She looked thoughtful for a moment and then she said, "Uchiha Itachi, you will not report my whereabouts to anyone or attempt to restrain or track me in anyway until at least a week has passed after both Sasuke and Deidara are found."

"Agreed. In exchange, Haruno Sakura, you will not attempt to escape over this period and will assist me in locating Uchiha Sasuke. And when the proposed week is over, you will return to Konoha with me."

Their eyes held for a moment longer before the glowing of the scroll broke their connection. As he watched, the blood seeped into the paper and formed the words they had just spoken. Once the writing was complete, he raised his hands.

"Katon."

The scroll burst into flames and the smoke from the small fire curled up right into their faces. The deep dark scent seeped into him and he could almost _feel_ the contract settling into him. It was done now.

"Well, now that it's done, what do we do?" she asked.

What indeed? From where he stood at the base of the rocky hill, he scanned their surroundings. Pebbles and scattered rocks were all around them and there were no trees beneath which they could take shelter. The only possible place for them to keep out of sight was under a rock slab overhanging a cliff face further down.

After a few moments, he turned to her. "We will rest now. It is unsafe to proceed with our chakra stores so depleted. When the sun sets, we will move again. It is best to travel in the dark since we're close to the border to Lightning."

"Lightning? That's where they are?" she asked.

"The trail leads east which suggests Lightning."

"I see."

He gestured to the rock overhang. "You may rest there while I take the first watch."

She looked at him for a long while and he gathered the impression that she was still uncertain if she should trust him despite their contract. The Sakura he had known back in Konoha would not have doubted his words. The kunoichi he had led then would have trusted him. This Sakura was more cynical, which was a good trait for a kunoichi but was not necessarily one which suited her.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

The pale blue sky had turned dark and murky by the time Sakura woke Itachi up. She was fully reenergized and so was he, it seemed. He looked better he had four hours ago. When he had woken her up for her turn, it had been hard to ignore how pale and drained he appeared. Her first impulse had been to offer to heal him only to realize that the only thing that would help was rest.

Discomfited by the direction of her thoughts, she said briskly, "I think we need to move soon before they get too far."

"Aa," he agreed.

Reaching into his vest pocket, he withdrew a cloth pouch and offered it to her. Recognizing what it contained, she took it gratefully. She would have to remember to restock the basics in her storage scroll.

Deidara had been doing so lately, she thought wistfully. It had not occurred to her until now just how much they depended on each other. He usually kept them fed while she made sure their weapons were stocked. She missed him. Barely a couple of days had passed and she already missed him. How deeply had she fallen for Deidara? And how was she to deal with this when they found Deidara and Sasuke? The terms of her contract with Itachi meant that she only had a week before returning to Konoha. She had a week to tell Deidara it was over.

A week seemed too short.

"What is wrong?"

Itachi's question jerked her out of her thoughts. Not meeting his eyes, she muttered, "Nothing." She shook out a mix of dried fruits and nuts into her palm before returning the pouch to him. "Thank you."

He gave her a speculative look but said nothing when he took the pouch. He then passed her an almost-empty canister and said, "We will need water soon."

She took a small sip and then gave it back.

As he ate slowly, Itachi glanced away into the distance, looking thoughtful. A feeling of déjà-vu washed over her. She had seen this expression in the past often enough to know that he was formulating a plan and she should not disturb him until he was ready to share it. She remembered how this was one of those things that made her notice him. He was always so calm and focused, something which she admired greatly. In his generation, he was one of the most talented shinobi. And it also helped that he looked good.

Her brows furrowed as she took her eyes off him. Why was she thinking of this now? Itachi's unexpected declaration earlier was definitely messing with her head. He couldn't be serious. He could be devious but blatantly lying about his _feelings_, of all things, was not really his style. But then again, how well did she know him? There had hardly been any personal interaction between them. All she knew was what Sasuke had told her and everything she had learnt while assigned to his squad. It made her uncomfortable to think that maybe her feelings for him were not as deep as she had thought, despite the hurt she'd experienced when it became clear that he did not feel the same way.

Besides, if she felt so strongly for him, she would have fought for him instead of running away, right?

She exhaled slowly as she rubbed a hand down her face. This whole internal debate was pointless. She was with Deidara now, at least until she decided what to do. Being with Itachi was not even an option, so dragging up the past changed nothing.

A movement from Itachi drew her eyes. He was standing a few steps away as he adjusted his weapons and he was clearly ready to move.

"We're heading east?" she asked as she tightened the medic pouch around her hips.

"Aa."

She nodded. "Lead the way, then."

They sped off immediately. Not long into the journey, it occurred to Sakura that she had fallen back to the old habit of travelling some distance behind him to the left, as required by the travel formation when she was in his squad. The ease with which she had fallen back to her old ways discomfited her. It was almost like she was betraying everything she had become over her time as a missing nin.

Would returning to Konoha feel the same? Would she fall back into old habits like she'd never left before? Of course not. She was effectively a traitor who had left without leave. Returning to Konoha definitely meant punishment of some sort. Was that fair, though? What was so wrong about being free like this? Or was that a traitorous notion? She would bet that Itachi never had a single thought about leaving Konoha. Was it because he was raised to believe that duty and loyalty were all there were to life or was he happy truly in that role? What about her? Did she choose freedom and happiness over duty because her late parents had always encouraged her to do so?

She stifled a groan of irritation. Thinking like this was getting her nowhere. She had to focus on the present, and that meant finding Deidara and Sasuke.

They continued to travel in silence. Five hours later, she began to wonder if they were on the right track. It was then that Itachi started to move with increased intensity, which told her that he had found something.

"Are they close by?" she asked as she sped up to run alongside him.

Without looking at her, he replied, "Yes."

Now that she was so close, she could see something in his expression which baffled her. He looked uncharacteristically tense and anxious, which was unusual since he was usually calm and collected in the face of all kinds of danger.

"What's wrong?" she asked cautiously.

He flicked a sideway glance at her. "The situation may not be as simple as it seems."

She frowned. Did he need to be so cryptic? "What do you mean by that?"

"I will explain later."

"Again with the later!" she exclaimed in exasperation. "It will make things much easier if I don't feel like I'm running headlong into some unknown danger."

Itachi's brows furrowed. "We're almost there. There isn't enough time to explain."

And this was probably not a good time to start arguing with him. Deciding that she would have to take his word for it, she held her tongue and continued to run.

Ten minutes later, Itachi slowed.

Skidding to a halt beside him, she glanced around the barren, rocky landscape which formed the hostile Lightning border with its neighbor. Illuminated only by the glowing moon overhead, everything seemed so still and lifeless. Almost like it was in a static bubble. And she remembered feeling this way not so long ago.

"Hey," she whispered. "This place is giving me the creeps."

In a low voice, he explained, "You're sensing the miko's barrier."

"Kagami?" Her eyes widened as she recalled experiencing exactly the same thing when she'd climbed up the shrine steps a few days back. Her mind felt fuzzy when she tried to remember what had happened next. "Something is not quite right," she muttered.

Itachi gave her a sharp look. "What is wrong?"

"I think Kagami did something to my mind. I keep trying to think about that last few moments at the shrine, but I can't seem to focus on it."

A muscle in his jaw tightened. "The Hokage will examine you in Konoha."

She stiffened immediately but she said nothing. Rather than heal her, Tsunade would probably strangle her when she returned to Konoha. She had betrayed her Shishou after all, even if it was to make sure that the Hokage was not implicated in her mad plan.

A strange feeling came upon her then, interrupting her thoughts. The fine hair at the back of her neck stood straight and her senses prickled in warning.

Then, all of a sudden, it was no longer deathly silent. The subtle sounds of wind blowing and the rolling clatter of loose pebbles made their way to her ears. Whatever shield that had gone up before was now gone. Did that mean that Deidara and Sasuke were gone too?

Her heart sank. "It's gone," she whispered.

Itachi nodded and just then, one of his crows appeared. They communicated silently for a while and then the crow flew off again. When he turned to face her, she could see determination written all over his features.

"They are heading still heading east," he informed her.

"We will find them, right?"

Itachi nodded resolutely. "We will."

And somehow, that made her feel much better.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

"You're going to regret this, you bitch!" Deidara snarled as he struggled against the glowing shit binding him to the wall.

He did not know how long he'd been stuck in this room since there were no windows or anything like that. Even though the place was constructed in the traditional manner using timber and paper-thin screens, he was unable to break through. It was as if the structure was reinforced with something he could not see or feel, keeping him stuck in here and insulated from everything outside. The monotony was only broken when some strange glowing tentacle things erupted from the symbol-covered wall to wrap around him and drag him against the surface, effectively restraining him prior to the miko's entry to this room.

"Soon your mouth will cease its foulness," Kagami murmured calmly.

Clamping surprisingly strong fingers around his jaw, she forced his head back before pouring some kind of tea into his mouth. He struggled and spat but it was futile. The lukewarm, bitter liquid went down his throat despite all his efforts. And as before, a warm buzz crept all over him as the liquid took effect. She had been feeding him the stuff for days and he dreaded to think what it was doing to him.

When the cup was empty, she released him and stood back. "There. It wasn't so bad, was it?"

He glared at her resentfully. She would suffer when he finally got free. And he _would_ get free because his stubborn partner would not rest until he was found. At one time, he would have cringed at the thought of relying on someone else but it was different now. Sakura had never let him down before, and he was sure that she would not start anytime soon. It was sheer luck that the crazy miko did not have Sakura, though for the world of him, Deidara could not work out why it was him, and not Sakura that she wanted. Sakura's special skills were surely more relevant to her.

Then again, who knew what went through an insane miko's mind?

Kagami tilted her head towards the shoji screen separating the room from the outside corridor. "Sasuke?" she called out.

A minute passed before the screen slid open, revealing the form of Sakura's friend. Deidara instantly glowered at him. The bastard might not remember Sakura because of some stupid amnesia, but when she found out that Sasuke was Kagami's little lapdog, there would be hell to pay.

"Kagami," the dark-haired nin greeted expressionlessly.

Deidara wanted to rearrange his face.

As the miko made her way through the open shoji screen, she instructed, "Knock him out."

"Aa."

And then the miko was gone.

Looking at Sasuke in disgust, Deidara snapped, "What the hell is wrong with you, yeah? Why are you listening to her?"

Without answering, the other man came to stand in front of him. Deidara couldn't discern a single thing from Sasuke's features. It was almost like the guy was carved out of wood.

"You know Sakura will have your nuts for this, don't you?"

"I don't know any Sakura."

Shit! He was not great at this, but he was usually less careless. "Nevermind. So what are you waiting for? Your mistress said to knock me out, didn't she?"

Sasuke frowned slightly. "Kagami is not my mistress."

"Really?" Deidara snorted. "Sure looks like it from here. She says jump, you jump. She says bark, you bark. You're nothing but a little lapdog."

"You're offensive," Sasuke told him, his expression bland again.

"Right. Then tell me why you listen to her, yeah. What does she have on you?"

The frown returned to Sasuke's face. This time, he appeared confused, making Deidara wonder if he was finally remembering something. It was really none of his business, but maybe for Sakura's sake he should try to prod the guy into remembering. Besides, it was not as if he'd anything better to do.

"Come on, man. You don't seem like the stupid type to me. And your fighting skills are decent. So what's keeping you here?"

Sasuke's frown deepened visibly but he said nothing.

Not about to give up, Deidara continued to push, "Hey, maybe it's because you have a thing for her, yeah. She's quite a looker, in a bitchy sort of way. Or maybe she's that good in the sack, hm?"

"No," Sasuke said abruptly.

"Ah, so it's not that." Deidara smirked. "What, you bat for the other team? You sure look like the type, yeah."

Sasuke gave him an offended look. "No. And shut up."

And his eyes turned red, a sure sign that Deidara was about to be knocked unconscious in the next few seconds.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

A wild animal howled, and Itachi turned in its direction to find a dark shape darting from a rocky ledge to another one below. It was almost pitch black here in the mountain ranges of Lightning Country as they walked along one of the trails with only the faint moonlight to provide some illumination. The trail which had been carved in the side of the mountain, although rough, was wide enough to accommodate at least three people walking abreast. It must have been created for transport wagons.

Itachi stifled a sigh of frustration as the faint trail he was tracking in the valley below disappeared again. He supposed it was fortunate that he could still see it with his Sharingan. But keeping his bloodline limit activated for such a prolonged period of time was beginning to take its toll. There was a dull ache behind his forehead and his eyes stung.

He could ask Sakura to heal his eyes, but he doubted it would be advisable given her current mood. The air between him and Sakura was still tense despite the contract they had signed a week ago. He stifled a sigh as he darted a sideways glance at her. Walking beside him in silence, she seemed to be lost in her own thoughts. He wondered what she was thinking. Each time he had attempted to introduce a topic of conversation, she had not so subtly responded in a brief and clipped tone, which informed him that she wished to be left alone.

It was clear that he had made no progress in gaining her trust over the past few days. At the rate it was going, she would still be unreceptive to him when they finally caught up with their targets. The irony was, their situation was now completely reversed, he thought as memories drifted into his mind.

_It had been another long mission but all his missions were long these days. He could not complain, because this state of affairs was by his own doing. He needed to be away from Konoha as much as he could for two reasons. _

_One was to find Sasuke, and another was to avoid Sakura. _

_Despite his resolution to maintain distance from her, he could not prevent anticipation from shooting through him as he neared the house. From his position on the rooftop of the next building, he could see her in the back yard, humming softly as she hung damp clothes from the line stretched across the fences. The last time he had seen her was just before he had left on this mission, and she had been making some sort of pickle that he did not recognize. She was always doing something domestic if she was not assisting at the Hokage's office. In the last seven months of their marriage, he had never seen her train in the small training yard at the end of the garden. It was almost as if she had set aside the kunoichi aspect of her, despite the fact that she was practically an ANBU. _

_And that never failed to irk him. _

_Sighing inwardly, he dropped down to the ground and went into his house through the front door. He went into Sasuke's bedroom, which he had claimed for his own, and dropped his pack. It did not take long for Sakura to realize that he was home. _

"_Itachi?" she called out._

_He could hear her moving towards him from the back of the house. "I'm in the bedroom." _

_Her steps halted at the door. "Welcome home."_

_He glanced over his shoulder to find her leaning against the doorframe, chewing on her bottom lip as her eyes landed on the pack he had set beside the bed. He knew that she was too polite to ask if he was sleeping here again, and as much as he despised himself for it he chose to ignore the topic. She would no doubt try to tempt him to join her again, but he needed to hold back. _

"_Are you hungry?" she asked as she stepped closer to the bed. _

_He shook his head, and then returned to unpacking. She was close enough now that he could smell the faint scent that was uniquely Sakura. He could never quite describe it, but it had always made him long to draw her close and breathe her in. And it was something that he would never allow himself the pleasure of doing, he reminded sternly. _

"_Itachi?" she prompted. _

_She had asked if he was hungry. He was not, but as much as he wanted to distance himself from her, he found himself saying, "A little."_

_A wide smile stretched across her face, wrenching something within him. "I'll make something while you settle in," she said eagerly. _

_Half an hour later, they were seated across each other in the dining area within the spacious kitchen. By then, he had enough time to think over his rash decision to give in and spend a little time with his 'wife', which resulted in guilt wracking through him. Sasuke should be seated here with her, not him. And once Sasuke returned, he would set things right. But he had to find his little brother first._

"_How is it?"_

_He looked up from his bowl of rice and fried cabbage to find her watching him expectantly. Somehow, Sakura had noticed that he was fond of cabbage and had managed to come up with many deliciously inventive recipes for the vegetable. This one was a new recipe._

"_It's very good. Thank you," he told her quietly. _

_They fell into silence again, which was beginning to seem like the norm the rare times they sat down together for a meal. He wished he could give in to the urge to converse with her properly, to tell her of the non-confidential aspects of his missions. He was certain that she would be interested. _

_Her attempts to make the best of this arranged marriage touched and worried him in equal measure. She was always open and approachable despite his deliberate coldness. Still, he knew that much as he would like to give in, doing so would only form a tighter bond between them, which would be worse in the long run. As it was, he could not imagine how Sasuke would feel if he returned to find the girl he loved married to his elder brother. He simply could not exacerbate the issue by being selfish. _

_After a while, Sakura spoke again, "Your mother was asking about you a few days ago."_

_He finished his meal and poured himself a cup of tea. "Is something the matter?"_

_There was a slight hint of accusation in her tone as she said, "It's just that she hasn't seen you for a while."_

"_The missions take priority," he told her simply, even though he knew that it was just an excuse. His mother was perceptive enough to detect that his marriage was not as it should be, and would no doubt take him to task for it. _

_Frowning now, she went on as she cleared away the dishes, "She misses you, Itachi. You need to visit her before you leave on another mission."_

"_Aa."_

"_Speaking of which, when is your next one?" she asked briskly. _

"_Tomorrow."_

_Her eyes widened incredulously. "What? This can't carry on, Itachi. You've been working like this for months on end."_

"_It's a busy time of the year," he said and then walked out to the living room. _

_She followed him, stopping in front of him as he sat down on the couch. Suspicion flashed across her face just before she inhaled a deep breath. "Alright. Fine. I don't want to argue with you." _

_It was then that her eyes darted to Sasuke's bedroom door. At that sight, Itachi quickly turned to pick up a book. It was an encyclopedia of herbs, he noted absently as he flipped through the pages. Anytime now, she would bring up the dreaded topic. _

"_You know, it's alright if you want to move back to your room," she said quietly._

_Hidden behind his hair, his eyes closed as he stifled a sigh. It always troubled him to refuse what was clearly an invitation but he had no choice. _

"_It's only for a night, Sakura," he told her. _

_Silence followed his proclamation and he could sense the tension emanating from her. He wished she would just lose her temper as she had always done in the past when faced with such things. Her open anger would be easier to handle than this silence because he just knew that the silence was costing her more. _

"_Alright. I'll leave you to read then."_

_And she padded out of the living room into the hallway which led to the backyard, leaving him alone to read the book he had no interest in._

Itachi rubbed his chest absently. Even now, he could still remember how excruciating it had been to deny her. But things were different now. Instead of Sakura attempting to open up lines of communication between them, it was his turn to reach out to her the best he could. Perhaps she would be less stubborn than he had been and would at least give them a chance despite her current bond with the Iwa nin.

"Do you not miss Konoha?" he broached, breaking the silence.

Without missing a step or sparing him a single glance, she answered grudgingly, "Sometimes."

He waited for a few seconds but she did not elaborate. Cautioning himself to remain patient, he said, "I do find myself missing the oddest things when I'm away."

She flicked him an odd, disbelieving look before focusing her eyes forwards again.

As discomfited as he was, he forged on, "Dango, for example. Are you familiar with the stall at the corner near the bookshop?"

"I've passed it once or twice," she replied in a stilted tone.

"Several months ago, there was an altercation between the owner of that stall and a new amanatto stall which opened across the street."

She stopped abruptly and let out a clearly irritated huff before turning to him. Crossing her arms over her chest, she gave him an uncompromising look. "I know what you're trying to do. But it's too late."

"It is not-" he began to protest, but was cut off.

"It's over. _We _are over. I'm done with being a good little Uchiha wife. So there's really no point in you trying to be friendly right now. It's not going to get you anywhere. I'd really prefer it if you went back to your old uncommunicative self."

He frowned. "I'm not uncommunicative."

She gave him an incredulous look. "Seriously? You really think that?" A vein in her brow twitched. "I remember a whole freaking _year_ of verbal constipation from you! How's that for uncommunicative?"

He blinked at her, a little unsure how to respond.

"And don't you deny it. I know you have a memory like an elephant, so I'm sure you remember how you've always made sure that our conversations remained short and almost nonexistent. Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to deal with you back then?" she ranted.

At least she was not silent now, Itachi thought wryly.

Her cheeks reddening with temper, she went on, "Hell, you had no trouble talking before we got married, so why not after? What happened? Married life was so bad you couldn't bring yourself to speak to me? Not even to tell me to get lost?"

The way her voice broke at the end, and the sight of something gleaming at the corner of her eyes before she turned and strode away made his chest clench painfully. Unsure of his next course of action, he stood rooted to the spot as she walked rapidly down the steep trail. He continued to stare at the empty space even after she disappeared around the corner. He knew that she was right to be angry, but how could he break through her anger to let her know that everything he had done was just a mask to hide the truth?

Exhaling loudly, he ran forward and rounded the corner. Before long, he caught up with her.

"Sakura."

"Don't talk to me!" she snapped.

Fine. He reached out, wrapped his hand around her arm and spun her around to face him. Outrage was written all over her face, and more and more he needed this contact with her, but he had to give something of himself as well.

And without a second thought, he slid both his arms around her and pulled her close into him. He felt her breath hitch and her entire body stiffen in surprise, but even when she tried to pull away he did not release her. It took a long time, but he simply held her until she ceased to struggle and her jagged breath evened out. By then her forehead was resting against his chest, and the warmth emanating from her filled him with something indescribable. He could only think of how much he wanted her to continue to remain in his arms like this.

After a while, he murmured, "I'm sorry, Sakura. I shouldn't have treated you so badly."

With a sniff, she pushed away and this time he let her go. She did not meet his eyes and her voice was shaky when she said, "You hurt me."

"I know," he admitted quietly. "I regret it."

She raised her gaze to his, her expression pained. "But it's really too late now."

He did not know what to say. But at least she was no longer ignoring him. That was surely a step in the right direction. Perhaps it was really too late like she'd just said, and if that was the case he truly had no one to blame but himself.

He opened his mouth to speak but broke off abruptly when a sudden flare of energy reached him. It was the same energy that materialized just before he had found Sakura unconscious. Tensing, he spun towards the direction it was coming from.

"What's wrong?"

"We need to move."

With that, he raced forward knowing that Sakura would follow. Keeping his chakra subdued as to avoid detection, he carried on until he reached a narrow gap between two mountains. That flare of energy had originated from the other side, but he needed to gain perspective of the situation before he progressed further. It would be foolish to execute a frontal attack when the circumstances were so uncertain.

Glancing over his shoulder, he pressed a finger to his mouth. Sakura nodded and then stopped behind him. Cautiously, he peered through the gap between the rock faces, and saw three indistinct forms down in the valley quite a distance away, all encompassed by a translucent red glow.

As he watched, the strange red glow faded out to be replaced by something more familiar. Unlike before when he could sense nothing of Deidara's and Sasuke's chakra, both their chakra were flaring up in full force now. In fact, the intensity of their chakra was the only reason he could see them at this distance.

Observing silently, a sinking sensation came over him when Sasuke raised a hand up in the sky and the first bolt of lightning came striking down to the ground.

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A/N: And that's it for now. Please review!

:elle6778:


	12. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing Chapter 10 and also thanks to littleredcoat for editing out the many mistakes in this chapter. Without further ado, here's it is.

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Chapter 11**

**(beta: littleredcoat)**

Lightning cracked the night sky beyond the mountains and drew Sakura's eyes to the numerous bolts darting down to the ground. All of them seemed to be focused in the same place but she could not see what they were hitting since Itachi was blocking her view. His reaction suggested that he had found Sasuke and Deidara, but she could not be sure since he had said nothing to that effect. They had not exchanged a single word after they had moved right after that sudden flare of foreign energy.

The recollection of just what had happened before that made her blanch in mortification. So much for being in control of her emotions and all that. She had lost it completely and had said much more than she had intended to. Hell, she had sounded pathetic enough that he, who hadn't so much as held her hand during their entire marriage, had deigned to hug her. He must have pitied her or something because it wasn't as if he did not know how she had felt about him.

That familiar presence at the back of her head scowled darkly, clearly disagreeing with her. Alright, fine. As angry as she was, she couldn't dismiss the sincerity in his actions and words. It might be too late for them to resume a marriage, but maybe both of them could get some sort of closure. He seemed to genuinely want a truce between them, even to the extent of apologizing.

What stumped her were his motives. What did he hope to gain by everything he was doing? He could not possibly want her back in Konoha as his wife. In fact, she'd expected that by now, Fugaku would have pressured him to find another well-connected kunoichi, maybe someone from the Hyuuga clan. Their marriage had been dissolved long ago, after all.

A particularly bright bolt of lightning struck, making Itachi even more tense and reminding her that this was really not the time to be thinking about the past.

"Are Sasuke and Deidara there?" she whispered.

"Aa."

Hope and anticipation burst through her. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go get them."

"It's not so simple."

"What do you mean?" she hissed as she went up on her toes in the attempt to see. She prodded his shoulder when he did not respond and said, "Itachi, what is going on up there? I can't sense them or anything. The only thing I can see is the lightning!" She huffed. "Come to think of it, I couldn't sense Sasuke a few days back, either. Is the miko shielding them or something?"

He nodded but he did not take his eyes away from whatever had captured his attention.

"Hey, don't keep me in the dark," she pressed. "Tell me what's going on."

After a while, Itachi glanced over his shoulders. "It would appear that both Sasuke and your nukenin are involved in something they should stay away from. The details are confidential, but I believe they are seeking certain objects."

Sakura frowned. "And how do you know this?"

He turned away from her, clearly letting her know that he wouldn't be answering anything else. She exhaled loudly, frustrated that she was in the dark. What she did not understand was why Deidara would involve himself with anything to do with Kagami. He clearly disliked her on sight. Perhaps she offered him something he could not refuse in return for her help. Maybe something related to his art. It would be just like Deidara to jump at such an offer. In that case, he needed a hard kick to his head to reset his thinking.

Or maybe he was forced, she thought with a wash of trepidation. Maybe he was being controlled or brainwashed. She could not help but recall how her mind seemed fuzzy when she tried to remember the last moments she'd spent at the shrine. She had a recollection of drinking tea and that was it. She might have taken a nap, but now that she thought further about it didn't seem feasible. Napping in an unknown territory would be a stupid thing to do, and she wouldn't have done it no matter how tired she was.

She sucked in a sharp breath. Had Kagami tampered with her mind? Had she tampered with Deidara's mind, and for that matter, Sasuke's?

"Is something the matter?"

At Itachi's question, Sakura turned to find they were almost nose-to-nose. Surprised, she took a step away, as he too tensed in reaction. Being in close proximity with Itachi made her twitchy.

"Nothing," she answered.

He appraised her wordlessly while she held his eyes, refusing to back down from his silent challenge. Irritation sparked through her. If he was going to keep stuff from her, there was no reason for her to share her suspicions with him, was there? There was clearly no trust between them, she thought bitterly. But then again, when had there been any trust between them? Trust would have meant open communication between them, wouldn't it?

Finally, he broke the stand-off. "You agreed to assist, Sakura. Hiding information will not help our cause."

She frowned at him, wondering if he would keep throwing their agreement in her face when he did not get his way. "I'm allowed some personal thoughts, surely," she returned dryly. "I didn't agree to allow you free access to everything I'm thinking."

His eyes flickered and then he opened his mouth to speak. But before he could make a sound, his attention was pulled away to the distance. As she watched, his eyes narrowed and his lips compressed. Something else was happening now.

"Let's go," he instructed abruptly. "Quickly."

All personal thoughts evaporated at the tone of his voice. With a nod, she followed his lead and move swiftly forward. The moment he'd squeezed through the gap between the two rock faces, she immediately followed.

Her eyes widened at the sight which greeted her, and her steps faltered briefly.

When she had been shielded between Itachi and the mountain earlier, she hadn't been able to see everything that was happening, but now she could. The air crackled as lightning forked down from the sky so frequently that a particular area in the vast expanse of land was constantly bathed in an eerie white glow. Three figures stood in the middle of this with their hands linked, protected from the lightning by an invisible spherical barrier. Sakura was too far away to see the details of what they were doing or hear anything, but she knew deep in her gut that something was not right.

There was a particularly loud crack from the sky which blinded her momentarily, and when Sakura managed to focus her eyes it was to find that the three had broken their hold on each other and raised their hands. Something indistinct began to coalesce mid-air. She sped up until she reached Itachi's side.

Concerned, she gasped, "What's that?"

"Something dangerous in the wrong hands," he answered tersely, his steps not slowing.

She glanced sideways. He looked worried and almost desperate, which only served to panic her because Itachi usually remained unfazed in the face of a challenge. Whatever this was, it was bad.

"We need to stop them," Itachi told her.

She fed more chakra to her feet and felt her heart pump faster as she sped up. In the distance, one of the figures glanced around, no doubt taking note of their approach. She could only hope that they could reach the three before they completed whatever that ritual was.

"You go ahead! I'm slowing you down," she yelled at Itachi.

She saw him nod and then he peeled away from her. Just for a brief moment, the feeling of inadequacy that she'd experienced back before she was apprenticed to Tsunade swamped her. But she knew now that everyone had their own strength and weaknesses. Despite all her improvements, speed was definitely not her thing and she would only hold him back.

The distance between them grew as Itachi neared the trio. Then he stopped abruptly and jumped back as if an invisible barrier repelled him. Itachi brought his hands together and the next thing she knew, a large fire was licking at a spherical surface which was previously not evident. Unfortunately, he was not having any success breaking through the barrier.

His actions caught the attention of those in the middle of the barrier and she saw a blond head turn to look over his shoulder.

Her heart skipped a beat and she called out, "Deidara!"

He shifted his glance from Itachi to her and then frowned coldly before he turned away. Shocked by his reaction, her steps faltered briefly. What the hell was that all about? She had never seen Deidara look at her like that before, as if she was nothing to him. And it stung badly.

Suddenly, mirrors the size of plates materialized out of nowhere. In seconds, there seemed to be hundreds of them bobbing about in the air, all facing her. The light from the bolts of lightning glinted off the many surfaces, making it hard for her to see.

"What the-"

A mirror disc came flying at her, forcing her to duck.

And that was when Sakura realized that they were under attack.

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"Deidara!"

Sakura? It sounded like Sakura. Struggling to focus, Deidara gave himself a mental shake. These days, it was difficult to keep his mind from wandering.

The last few days had been such a blur that it was hard to tell what was real and what was not. At one point, he had thought that he was back in Iwa being interrogated about his defection, and then it had been old man Onoki glaring down at him disapprovingly like he had done so often back when the he was training him. But the next moment, he was with Sakura, their sweaty limbs tangled up as their passion ran rampant. Since he _knew_ that he hadn't actually had sex with Sakura, it was clearly not real. But it had seemed so real at the time.

He also remembered being in a room, restrained and force-fed some strange tea. The tea was clearly drugged or something, and now he was suffering the effects of it. Some drugs made people hallucinate, right?

But was this real or not? Why was he standing in the middle of what appeared to be a lighting storm staring at a lump of stone forming in the sky? He took note of Sasuke's impassive expression, wondering if the other nin was just as confused as he was. Or perhaps this was just some sort of weird dream.

Sakura's voice had at least managed to penetrate the fog.

"Sakura!" he yelled back.

At least, he tried to yell. Instead, almost as if he was watching a stranger operating his body, he saw himself glance at her small figure in the distance and then look away dismissively. Lightning struck the ground all around them, but it seemed to only hit Sasuke. Oddly enough, instead of being harmed, Sasuke grew stronger with each strike. While the miko continued to chant, Deidara looked down in alarm to find his own chakra leaking out of his body to enter the miko. He tried to rein it in but it was futile.

He looked up again in the attempt to spot Sakura. She was still a good distance away and was moving erratically now. Wait! Was she fighting someone? Or was she fighting something? It was hard to tell. With each strike of the lightning, disc-like objects were glinting and sparking around her. They almost look like mirrors floating in the air. He recalled seeing mirrors just like that in that place where he had sparred with Sasuke.

Shit! Sakura was being attacked by damned flying mirrors!

"Get back, Sakura!" he yelled out in warning.

But she did not even turn to look at him. It was as if she did not hear him.

Filled with dread, he yelled, "Sakura! Can you hear me?"

Once again he received no response. Sakura continued to duck and swipe at the mirrors with her katana. Closer, he could make out another form in the midst of the sea of mirrors. Weirdly enough, this other form looked like the Leaf ANBU. What the hell, yeah? What was Sakura doing with him and why did they appear to be working together?

Something was not right and he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. Was this another hallucination?

"Deidara!"

Straining, he directed his wandering attention to Sakura. She managed to come closer now and the mirrors seemed less dense. Still, it was stupid of her. She should be getting out of here.

"Deidara, you bastard! What the hell is wrong with you? Snap out of it."

What? What was she talking about?

Another voice broke into his train of thought. "Deidara. Don't let your mind wander. We need more chakra."

A flash of red hair drew him and he saw the miko smiling at him encouragingly. He wanted to tell her to fuck off, but what came out of his mouth was, "Sure, yeah. Take all you need."

When Deidara realized what he had just said, horror filled him.

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His crows burst into the air, attacking the mirrors to clear a path for Itachi to move. As he ran, something warned him that they would not successfully stop what was happening. Avoiding the stray mirrors which escaped his crows, he caught a glimpse of the tablet fragment. It was solidifying rapidly. Urgency rushed through him as he used his katana to swipe aside more of those mirrors. While they were clearly not sentient and were easily destroyed, there were enough of them to slow both him and Sakura down, costing them precious time as the miko performed her ritual with the assistance of the two shinobi.

A sideways glance told him that two shadow clones were running at Sakura's sides, deflecting the mirrors before they could reach her. It allowed her to race towards the target. Determination was carved onto her features and he knew that she was doing everything she could to get to their targets.

A flare of energy brought his eyes back to the stone tablet. To his dismay, it was now solid and floating to the ground. Sasuke took it and handed it to the miko without ceremony. Deidara held open a storage scroll and the stone tablet fragment was dropped into it.

That was when Sasuke's eyes fell shut and he dropped heavily to the ground.

"Sasuke!" Sakura called out.

Itachi grimaced as his shuriken connected with the mirrors flying towards him, sending them to the ground. A glance at Sakura told him that she was now rushing towards Sasuke's unconscious form on the ground.

Itachi's gaze met the golden eyes of the miko. The glint of triumph in hers was unmistakable. In the next moment, the floating mirrors shattered mid-air.

With a burst of energy, she and Deidara disappeared from sight.

Then everything went eerily quiet. The lightning was gone, and the night sky was still with no sign of the turbulence which had filled it just moments ago.

Fury coursed through Itachi when he realized that he could no longer sense the miko or the Iwa nukenin. But he would handle that later. Right now, he thought as he rushed towards Sakura with no regards to the sharp mirror shards on the ground, he had to make sure that Sasuke was unharmed.

When he reached them, she was bent over his younger brother with her glowing hands pressed against his chest. Sasuke was paler than usual and there was a frightening blue tinge to his lips. Itachi felt a cold clench around his heart.

Swallowing past the tightness in his throat, he asked, "How is he?"

Without taking her eyes off Sasuke, she replied, "He's suffering from chakra exhaustion. Apart from that, his vitals seem fine." Taking her hands away, she stood up to face him with a worried expression. "We need to find someplace safe to let him recuperate. There's that small village we passed by yesterday. That should be safe enough for a while."

Nodding in agreement, Itachi bent down to sling Sasuke over one shoulder. Through the layers of clothes, he could feel Sasuke's ribs pressing against him. His little brother clearly had not been looking after himself. Once he woke up, he would have some questions to answer, Itachi thought darkly as he began to make his way in the direction of their destination.

The evidence against Sasuke was damning, when one considered what he had been involved in a year before his disappearance. To find him assisting the miko in retrieving the stone tablet fragment was another strike against him. Konoha would not let him off lightly. Worse, Itachi did not know what he should do now. If he reported this entire incident truthfully, then Sasuke was likely to be found guilty of treason. However, hiding this from Konoha was wrong.

Then again, hiding Sakura's status from Konoha was equally wrong, he thought with a glance at the silent kunoichi. She was moving beside him, her brows drawn as she chewed her bottom lip. Something worried her but he could not tell if it was because of what she had seen earlier or if it was something to do with Sasuke. Or perhaps her mind was on Deidara. From what he could tell, the nukenin had now aligned himself with the miko, something which he doubted pleased Sakura.

After a while, she turned to him. Her expression was shuttered when she asked flatly, "Are you going to help me find Deidara now that we've got Sasuke?"

He heard her unspoken declaration that she would be searching for her partner regardless of his answer. "Yes. However, there are… issues I need to discuss with Sasuke when he wakes."

Her glance went to Sasuke's unconscious form. "He'll probably remain unconscious for a least a day. Maybe two." Anxiety shaded her voice as she remarked, "Deidara could be anywhere by then."

"I will still be able to track the chakra trail," he assured her, tamping down on his growing annoyance.

Despite consenting to assist her, he admitted that found the entire notion of searching for the nukenin distasteful. He knew that the quicker he found Deidara, the sooner his time with Sakura would end, but that meant that she would return to Konoha sooner. Nevertheless, whether Deidara was in the picture or not, he would have to find the miko. She now possessed a piece of the stone fragment. He needed to find out if she had more in her possession.

It appeared that his vacation was now officially over. He would contact the Hokage to inform her that he had found a lead on the stone tablet and would be following it.

"I just don't understand why…" she trailed off.

"Why the Iwa nin was assisting the miko?" Itachi supplied.

Not able to hide the pained shadows that flashed across her eyes, Sakura nodded. "He saw me but…"

Itachi looked away, not able to watch her agonize over the other man. She clearly felt betrayed. The selfish part of him was pleased that the nukenin had apparently chosen a path away from Sakura, but he was also irked that she was allowing herself to be so affected by this. He could tell that they cared for each other, but in the end, a missing nin was a missing nin. The blond should be nothing more than a transient presence in her life.

"Perhaps she offered a compensation that he couldn't refuse," he suggested.

"Maybe," she muttered dejectedly.

Her tone grated at him and he stopped abruptly to face her. "Sakura. You are fully aware that he's a nukenin."

She blinked once, and then scowled. "What's your point? That a nukenin always looks out for himself and no one else?"

He did not bother to answer.

Her eyes narrowed. "You don't know him. Deidara is different."

"And how many missing nins do you know?" he challenged, keeping his tone level.

"You've forgotten that I'm one? And to answer your question, I've met enough of them to know that Deidara is different. He watches my back all the time. He has never let me down before, and I trust him."

The way she did not trust _him_, Itachi added for her. "You can trust me."

She snorted in disbelief. "Really? Let's put aside the past and concentrate on our more recent interactions. How many things have you kept from me, despite my asking? That doesn't sound as if you trust me. So why should I trust you?"

He winced inwardly at the accusation. She had a point.

"So, maybe it's time for you to tell me what was going on back there," she demanded.

At times, he had disregarded the confidentiality clause in his line of work. Perhaps this was to be one of those situations. He needed to gain her trust and furthermore, it would be dangerous for Sakura to continue accompanying him without knowing the full facts. His only reservation was that he was no longer certain that he knew her well enough to be confident of her loyalties. Part of him could not see Sakura betraying Konoha, despite the fact that she was a nukenin. The cautious side of him, however, pointed out that Sakura had changed, and was therefore unpredictable.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she snapped, "Well? I want to know what's going on with that thing the miko got out of the sky."

Itachi closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. A decision had to be made.

She rolled her eyes, clearly exasperated. "I'm not going to sell Konoha's secrets to anyone. You can have my word on that."

Somehow, that made him feel better. "Fine. A powerful stone tablet was broken up into five pieces following Madara's death. I've been assigned to locate the fragments before they end up in the wrong hands."

Her brows furrowed. "Madara? But he has been dead for a long time. Five or six years ago, wasn't it? Why is it an issue now?"

"The fragments reappeared one thousand eight hundred days after his death. We believe that upon his death they were shielded and then scattered," he elaborated.

"Kagami got hold of a fragment, didn't she? That was the thing she got from the sky. What does it do?" she asked.

"Suffice to say that the one with all the fragments would be capable of taking down an entire hidden village."

She sucked in a sharp breath. "Please tell me you've found most of them."

"Only one."

She groaned out loud. "And now Kagami has one. What about the rest?"

"Their locations are unknown."

Looking annoyed, Sakura said, "Tsunade-sama must have teams of ANBU looking for them by now."

"No."

Her expression turned incredulous. "No? What do you mean, no? You just told me that there are other fragments lying around. You can't possibly be the only one assigned to this mission."

Did she think that he was incapable of completing it? His tone was dry when he said, "I assure you I'm fully qualified to complete this mission. At the moment, a very limited number of individuals know about this stone tablet and what it can do, and the Hokage wishes to maintain the secrecy."

Her brows furrowed thoughtfully. "What exactly does it do? When the whole thing is complete, I mean."

He shook his head once. "I've already told you more than I should."

She huffed irritably. "I hate how you keep things from me."

Itachi watched as she stalked ahead of him, clearly annoyed that he had not told her anything. Perhaps when she had calmed down, he would explain why he thought it was best for her to have only limited knowledge of the stone tablet.

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The room was like any typical room in an inn. There was a small, curtained window opposite the door, a double bed with sagging mattress and a table with two plastic chairs. To one side, there was a small cubicle that housed the sink, toilet and a shower. It was an old place but it was clean. There was barely any dust flying about when she dragged the curtains shut against the afternoon sun.

"Remain with Sasuke. I will return soon."

She turned away from the window to find Sasuke lying on the bed with the sheets drawn to his chin and Itachi moving towards the door they'd just come through seconds ago.

"Where are you going?" she asked curiously.

He paused with his hand on the doorknob. Without turning around, he said, "The Hokage requires a report."

Her heart seemingly jumped into her throat. "You're not going to-"

"You will not be mentioned." His eyes flicked to Sasuke. "Neither will he."

Relief mingled with confusion but before she could voice a question, Itachi explained, "Certain issues require… clarification before Sasuke's status is made public."

And then he was gone, leaving her to stare thoughtfully at the closed door. The idea that Itachi was holding back information from Konoha was a difficult one for her to grasp. Was this the first time he did something like this, or he had done similar things in the past? She always thought that he was the type to report everything to the Hokage. That was what he had done back when she was in his ANBU squad, wasn't it?

Hang on. That was not quite right. If that was the case, he wouldn't have made a deal with her, would he? He would have just sent her back to Konoha to be sentenced. Instead, he chose to act differently. It was beginning to seem as if she did not know him at all, and this made her feel uneasy. Hell, if she was honest with herself, it made her downright guilty for judging him unfairly.

And speaking of reporting, she needed to get in touch with Naruto to let him know what was happening. She also wanted him to find out what was going on with this stone tablet. She was not sure if she could trust Itachi to tell her everything.

Itachi, Itachi, Itachi. Why did everything seem to revolve around him, she wondered grumpily.

Deciding then that she needed to focus her mind on something other than Itachi, she resolutely dragged one of the plastic chairs to the bed and sat beside Sasuke. Reaching out, she ran her glowing hands over him again. His vitals were stable but then again, he had been unconscious since they'd found him last night. All this sleep had replenished his chakra long ago.

An hour or so passed and then there was a knock on the door. A brief uncloaking of its presence told her that it was Itachi, and with relief she went to let him in.

"How is he?" he asked as he walked in.

"Stable."

Itachi's eyes remained on Sasuke and there was no mistaking the worry in them. She wondered if Sasuke knew just how much his brother loved him, despite all those times Sasuke had complained about Itachi. Returning her attention to Sasuke, she pushed a strand of dark hair away from his forehead. He sure had a lot of questions to answer when he finally woke up. However, with the loss of memories, he might not be so willing to answer any of those questions.

Come to think of it, he might be downright hostile.

Reluctantly, she told Itachi, "It might be a good idea to restrain him before he wakes. He doesn't remember me. And I have no idea if he'll remember you."

Itachi moved to her side, brushing against her arm as he leaned over for Sasuke's hands. Sakura found herself tensing at his proximity, but it would look stupid if she tried to move away so she forced herself to stay put while he restrained Sasuke to the metal frame of the bed. Being this close while not in a fight allowed those memories of how she'd felt in the past to surface. His scent always reminded her of the outdoors mixed with something that was uniquely him. She had only been able to catch it very infrequently even while they had been married to each other. Hell, she'd been closer to him _before_ their marriage.

She had tried, though. She had tried to fix it, but it was futile.

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"Sakura."

She jumped at his voice and it brought their faces close. He saw her eyes widen before she jerked away from him, making him feel like he had done something wrong even though he knew that he hadn't. Why was she still so wary of him?

That was when his eyes narrowed on the blush dusting her cheeks and her refusal to meet his eyes. Perhaps her discomfiture arose from something else other than wariness? Attempting to guess what she was thinking was near impossible, and based on their past, perhaps he should not even try. His success rate when it came to her was disappointingly low, after all. The direct approach was his best option. Besides, after his apology, perhaps she would be more willing to converse with him.

"What is on your mind?" he asked simply.

Her brows twitched. "Nothing."

Perhaps he would have left it at that if her cheeks had not reddened. "Something is bothering you."

Bristling, she turned to glare at him. "_You_ are bothering me right now. Just leave me alone."

A little confused by the intensity of her reaction, he remarked slowly, "I'm merely concerned, Sakura."

"Just stop it, alright," she ground out as she pushed the chair away from the bed and stood up.

"Stop?" he echoed, straightening as well.

Crossing her arms over her chest in a move which broadcasted defensiveness, she said pointedly, "Stop pushing me for conversation."

He raised a brow. "You expect us not to interact?"

"Since when did you get so talkative?" she asked, giving him an incredulous look. "I don't remember you prodding me like this before. Since when are you ever interested in what others are thinking?"

"People change," he told her as he took a seat on the chair she had vacated.

She blinked. "And in your case, the change means butting into my thoughts at every opportunity?"

A possible reason for her reaction suddenly dawned upon him. Feeling a bubble of amusement rising in his chest, he murmured, "If you happen to be thinking of me, then yes."

She gasped out loud and went redder which only confirmed his suspicion that he was on her mind. With an indignant huff, she spun around and stalked past him to the windows. Her back was pointedly aimed in his direction as she peered out of the gap between the brown curtains. A smile tilted the corner of his lips. Her attempts to disregard him should not amuse him, but they did.

"Sakura?" he prompted.

Her shoulders tensed visibly. Without looking at him, she replied tightly, "You have some nerve. What makes you think you're on my mind? But even if you're right, and I actually was thinking about you it's because every time I see you I'm reminded of how stupid I was."

His amusement fled. Cautiously, he broached, "A discussion about our shared past is long overdue. There have been some misunderstandings that need to be clarified."

She glared over her shoulder at him.

Holding up a placating hand, he admitted quietly, "I have made many mistakes. And I've apologized for hurting you."

The defiant look disappeared and her lips trembled slightly before she caught the bottom one between her teeth. Pain flashed across her features before she quickly masked it. It dismayed him to know that he had caused her distress. The only solution to this was to converse about it and perhaps one day she would forgive him.

"Will you allow me to explain?" he asked.

For a long time, she did not move.

"Please, Sakura," he said quietly.

Her eyes snapped to his and he could see the indecision in them.

Finally, when he thought that he had reached another dead end, she executed a jerky nod. Relief washed over him. It was clear that she was uncomfortable with this, but he was thankful for the opportunity to clarify matters. He moved his gaze from her to Sasuke's pale face and considered where to begin. As uncomfortable as it made him to reveal his inner thoughts, he knew that it was necessary if he wanted a chance to be with her again.

A moment later, he commenced, "The Uchiha clan has always been ambitious. The clan was never satisfied that Senju after Senju was placed in the position of power. My father seeks a connection to this power and that was why he encouraged me to court you. You are the considered the Hokage's surrogate daughter, after all. The first time he informed me of intentions, you were only sixteen. "

He heard her exhale out loud before she admitted, "Shishou told me. But she managed to put him off until two years later. That was when you actually proposed, right? But you didn't want to, did you?"

He shook his head. "I had other issues on my mind, and marriage was not one of them."

"Then I don't get why you even proposed!"

Deciding that Sakura probably already knew about the trouble within the Uchiha by now, he explained, "It was necessary for my father to be agreeable to my suggestions on clan affairs, and that meant giving in to some of his requests. Proposing to you was a proof that I was willing to set aside my personal wishes for the good of the clan."

"To the extent of marrying someone? What about me? Didn't you consider how I might feel?" she asked in a measured tone.

He nodded. "Yes. But I had fully expected you to refuse."

Out of the periphery of his vision, he saw her move towards him. "Refuse? Why did you expect such a thing? I was happy to accept. You knew how I felt about you."

His chest clenched. "Not then. I'd been under the assumption that you were in love with Sasuke."

She came to stand before him. Looking confused, she remarked, "I don't understand why you'd think such a thing. I love him as a teammate and as a good friend. Sure it looked like Sasuke and I had something going on earlier, but we were never really together."

A certain memory came to mind, causing him to rub the back of his neck in discomfiture at the notion of broaching it. And yet, he had to. "At seventeen, you were a couple, were you not?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "Not really."

Irked by her apparent forgetfulness, he said bluntly, "I share accommodations with Sasuke."

"So?"

"I overheard something… private," he confessed reluctantly.

She stilled as her mind wandered to the past. And then her cheeks reddened and her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a gasp. "Sasuke's seventeenth birthday?" she cried out.

"Aa."

She blanched and then broke eye contact. For a long time, she simply stared at the wooden floor. He wondered if she was revisiting that night in her mind. The mere thought of it made him clench his hands into fists. As he watched, she rubbed her hands up and down her arms, almost as if she felt cold.

"Nothing happened," she finally muttered.

He frowned. Nothing happened? Was she lying?

Exhaling loudly, she went on, "You must have left the house soon afterwards."

Itachi said nothing. But she was right. After less than a minute of listening in stunned silence, he had quietly but speedily left the house, unable to take in anymore. It was soon afterwards that he had realized that what he felt for Sakura was far beyond platonic fondness.

"Nothing happened." She sighed. "Sasuke and I had a big fight after that."

Itachi's eyes flew to her rigid form. They had a fight? "I wasn't aware of that."

"Would it have made a difference?"

"Perhaps." He glanced down at his clasped hand. "I might have questioned my assumption about your relationship with him."

"And if you came to the conclusion that Sasuke and I weren't an item?" she prompted quietly.

"Then I would have treated you as a husband treats his wife." He glanced at her to find her staring with surprise and then added, "I was attracted to you then, and that hasn't changed."

After a while Sakura laughed softly, but there was no mistaking the bitter note in the sound. "This is unbelievable. I think it's beginning to make sense now." There was a poignant look in her eyes when they met his. "You didn't think it was right to have a relationship with someone you thought had feelings for your little brother. That about sums it up?"

He nodded slowly, his mind whirring with the implications of what she had just said. "You truly never had a relationship with Sasuke?"

Looking regretful, she shook her head. "That night was a mistake. We had too much to drink and things… got out of hand. It shouldn't have happened."

"You were close even without the intimacy." Too close to be just teammates, he added silently.

"It was just an act." She sighed. "Sasuke wanted a buffer to keep other girls away and I agreed to help. Neither of us came right out and said that we were in a relationship. Everyone just assumed. So there was actually nothing going on between us even though it looked that way right up to that time..." She cleared her throat. "Right up to the time I accepted your proposal."

Was it truly so simple? So he had been placing himself in distress for no reason at all. All that time he could have pursued her without guilt? All this that time he could have been a real husband to her?

"I was surprised by your acceptance. Even when the Hokage declared Sasuke dead, I suspected he was still alive," he admitted quietly. "So I did not wish to compromise you."

She grimaced. "So you pushed me away because you thought he'd return at some point and you didn't want to fight Sasuke over me?"

"Aa." After a moment, he added, "I also overheard something which led me to believe that marriage was not what you wanted."

"What?"

"That is not important now. At that time, it convinced me to give you plenty of reasons to end the marriage."

Frowning, she asked, "I guess you wanted me to be the one to break it off because you don't want to look bad in front of Fugaku?"

"Partly. By being the one to annul the marriage, you would bear less of a dishonor than I."

"But I stayed on instead of getting the hint. I should've left in the first month before all the talk started." A weary laugh left her as she sat back down next to Sasuke's bed. "This is such a mess, isn't it?"

Silence descended upon them. Needing to do something, he stood up and walked to the window to look out, just as Sakura had done earlier. He knew that she needed some time to come to terms with what he had just told her. Just as he needed time to understand that she had accepted the proposal because she wanted to, not out of a sense of obligation to Konoha. How would things progress from here?

"Itachi?"

He glanced over his shoulder to find Sakura leaning over Sasuke with a concerned frown. Alarm shot through him as he strode to join them by the bed. Was Sasuke's condition deteriorating?

It was then that Sasuke's eyes shot open.

"Well, it looks like we might get some answers now," Sakura said dryly as she straightened up.

Itachi kept his eyes on his brother and saw nothing but animosity mingled with caution on the younger Uchiha's features. Somehow, he did not think that getting answers from Sasuke would be simple.

The man sitting up on the bed wore the expression of a stranger.

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Would really appreciate it if you left a review. Thanks!

Elle6778


	13. Chapter 12

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Many thanks to all who reviewed and also to littleredcoat for proofreading so many chapters of this story.

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Chapter 12**

**(Beta: littleredcoat)**

"Release me."

Sakura scowled at the stranger in the bed. "Not a chance," she told him flatly.

Sasuke's glare was heartbreakingly familiar. It reminded her of the team mate she had grown up with, and it pained her to think that he might not ever remember her. The possibility that this had been deliberately done to him made her so mad that she wanted to punch a hole in something.

Keeping her tone even, she asked, "What do you remember of your life before you met Kagami?"

His expression grew darker, and he pointedly turned his face away from her.

"Answer her, Sasuke," Itachi interjected quietly.

Sasuke raised a pair of defiant eyes at him, and Sakura held her breath. Would he recognize his own brother? Although she wanted to look at Itachi to get some idea of how he felt, she kept her eyes on Sasuke.

Truthfully, she had no idea how she should act around Itachi now that he had explained why he had acted as he had. She supposed she could think of his confession as a ruse to bring her to his side, but she found that hard to believe. She might not know him very well, but she knew him enough to understand that he was not the type to speak of his feelings openly. If she was to believe everything Itachi had told her, then that meant that she had been thoroughly fooled by his act of indifference in the past. In fact, it had been so convincing that even now, she found it hard to believe that he had any sort of interest in her.

Sighing inwardly, she recalled what it had been like back then.

_It had been almost a year since she was wed and she still had no idea what her husband looked like under all those clothes. She understood that he was busy with all his missions back to back but this was getting ridiculous. And when he was back in Konoha, he was too tired to do anything but sleep. _

_By now, she suspected that being away on missions was only an excuse. Should she be surprised, though? This was not a traditional marriage after all. What if he actually found her undesirable? What if all those rumors running amok these past few months were actually true? She supposed she could confront him about his supposed infidelity, but did she really want to? He was her husband, but he was far from approachable. She did not even know how to broach the subject, as embarrassing as it was. _

_Besides, they only had a handful of conversations over the year and those had occurred mostly in the first month of their marriage. As unbelievable as it seemed, her husband barely had time to say two words to her between his missions. He usually arrived home when she was already asleep, and left in the morning before she woke up. He was courteous enough to always leave her a note on the kitchen table though, she thought bitterly. _

_Who could blame her for thinking that he was deliberately avoiding her? _

_She wasn't so obtuse as to ignore the glaring fact that she and her husband barely saw or spoke to each other. She had no control over his movements, but she had been working with Tsunade long enough to know that even ANBU could take breaks. Her husband clearly was avoiding her for some reason. _

_He probably regretted marrying her. In which case, he shouldn't have proposed in the first place, should he? It wasn't as if she'd begged him to marry her. When she was only sixteen, __Fugaku had spoken to Tsunade about the possibility of an arranged marriage between her apprentice and Itachi. Tsunade had refused with the excuse that Sakura was too young to consider such things, and that Konoha needed her skills as an active shinobi. However, to appease Fugaku, she promised to reconsider when Sakura turned eighteen. The moment she turned eighteen, Fugaku__ had approached Tsunade again. He had claimed that such a marriage would strengthen ties between the Uchiha and the Senju, via Sakura, who was like a surrogate daughter to the Hokage. _

_Sakura snorted. Well, it looked like those ties were going to break soon. And frankly, she had had enough. She had tried to make the marriage work, but such things took the effort of both parties. Her naiveté was to blame as well, she admitted. Tsunade had reservations about the whole proposal from the start, and had advised Sakura that it was ultimately her own decision. And the fool she was, she had been besotted enough with the Uchiha to accept it. _

_Idiot! _

_She compressed her lips into a thin line. _

_No, she had taken things lying down for far too long already. If a year had passed and he was no closer to accepting her, then he would never accept her. But she could do one last thing for herself before she ended it._

_She had overheard Tsunade mention offhand that his ANBU team was due back tonight. _

_So tonight was the night._

"Sakura?"

She started, her eyes shooting up to find Itachi watching her intently. Her cheeks heated up in guilt for being distracted, and she quickly averted her gaze. It was much safer to focus on Sasuke right now instead of allowing herself to be waylaid by her own memories.

"Answer her question, Sasuke."

"I don't have to do anything you say," Sasuke returned stonily.

In a flash, Itachi had his hand around Sasuke's neck. Sakura stifled a gasp of alarm as Itachi applied pressure, pressing his brother into the mattress, seemingly with disregard for the fact that he was cutting off Sasuke's air supply. However, even though she itched to pull Itachi away, she knew that she shouldn't interfere. Itachi loved Sasuke too much to harm him. If civility failed to gain cooperation from Sasuke, perhaps force would do the trick.

Sasuke began to gasp and thrash but his actions were ineffective. With his hands tied to the bedposts with chakra bonds, there was very little he could do. His Sharingan activated and with blood-red eyes, he glared defiantly at his older brother.

"Answer the question, Sasuke," Itachi instructed flatly.

The cold expression on his face gave her chills. Maybe it was time to step in. "You're hurting him, Itachi," she said softly.

He ignored her, and kept his eyes on his younger brother.

Just as she was about to protest again, Sasuke gasped, "Fine! Let go!"

To Sakura's relief, Itachi loosened his grip and stood back. "Speak."

"I don't know!" Sasuke croaked defiantly. His flickering red eyes betraying his confusion, he admitted, "I remember nothing before Kagami."

Sakura's heart sank. This was bad, she thought as she looked up to find Itachi eyeing Sasuke with a grim expression.

"I'll run a check on him," she announced as she walked to the other side of the bed.

However, when she reached out to touch him, Sasuke jerked away from her. His features displayed nothing but distrust. Did he not recognize her at all, even subconsciously? It hurt to think that he had forgotten everything they'd ever been through.

"I won't harm you," she assured him quietly.

His wary eyes remained on her as she reached out towards him with her glowing hands. There was an almost imperceptible flinch when she made contact with his skin, but apart from that he did not move.

Closing her eyes to concentrate better, she carefully directed her chakra into his head. Memories were stored in certain places in the brain, and those were the areas she probed carefully. To her puzzlement, it did not seem as if anything was wrong according to what her investigative chakra was telling her, at least not medically. If Kagami had tampered with Sasuke's memories, there should be some signs of disruption.

Opening her eyes, she withdrew her hands.

"Well?" Sasuke barked irritably.

She shook her head once, not knowing what to say. In response, Sasuke gave her a look which implied that she was all but useless, and it made her want to put her fist into his face. The only thing that stopped her was the fact that he probably found his memory loss just as frustrating, but he was able to hide his reaction better.

"We know very little of what the miko is capable of," Itachi remarked calmly.

Sakura turned to find him staring at Sasuke. "So what do we do now?" she asked worriedly. "His memories-"

"May or may not return," Itachi interjected. "But there is nothing we can do about that now."

"So what _can_ we do?" she asked with a heavy sigh.

Itachi averted his eyes and his brows furrowed thoughtfully. It caused her heart to sink. If Itachi couldn't figure out a way forward, then what hope did they have?

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They were heading west.

Damn it! He knew that they were heading west, but he had no way of stopping it despite how desperate he was to run the other direction. All he could do was watch from this weird bubble he seemed to be trapped inside. It was as if someone else was operating his body.

He hated this!

"Ah, we're heading back towards where we met, aren't we?"

Deidara shifted his attention to the golden-eyed redhead standing at the top of the shrine steps. The whole situation was surreal. He was standing on top of the hill which housed the shrine while it floated across the land like it was a ship travelling on water. They were moving at an average travelling pace but no one seemed to be able to see or touch them.

As if from a distance, he heard his own voice say, "Good thing you found us, yeah."

A satisfied smile formed on her lips. "It was a good coincidence. I suppose I could have found someone else who satisfies the criteria, but why bother? You're perfect. But we'll have to think about finding you a friend soon, don't we?"

Deidara groaned as his outer self declared, "Why not, yeah! Make sure it's a chick and we're all good."

"Yes. I think I have just the right girl in mind."

No! Sakura would kill him if he did anything with another woman. In fact, he didn't know if he could _stand_ watching himself betray Sakura. But then again, after that incident in Lightning, Sakura probably wouldn't want to talk to him again. Shit, he needed to get out of this stupid trap so that he could regain control of his body. Every technique has a loophole. There must be something he had missed here. All he had to do was to think through it.

And that was easier said than done. He had never been good at strategizing. Sure he was great at thinking on his feet, but he was always too impatient to come up with a huge pre-planned tactic to solve a problem. That was Sakura's job.

Damn it! What would Sakura do if she was in his position?

"I think I might try a locator spell," Kagami mused.

His chain of thought interrupted, Deidara turned his attention to the miko. She was holding a mirror the size of a plate in front of her as she chanted softly under her breath. Through the eyes of his traitor of a body, he could see a smile growing on her face.

And then her face… cracked? What the fuck?

A little freaked out but unable to tear his eyes away, he watched as fractures appeared on her skin, as if her face was made out of some brittle material. It was almost like she was wearing a cracked mask. What the hell was behind that mask? What secret was she hiding?

"Ah, there she is," Kagami murmured in satisfaction as she studied the mirror.

Was she talking about Sakura?

His outer self asked, "Who?"

Lowering the mirror, Kagami turned to him. The cracks in her face faded out to leave a flawless surface, making Deidara feel like he was going out of his mind. He _had_ seen her face crack, right? Or was it some sort of weird illusion?

And then she smiled. "Why, your new partner, of course. You didn't think I would have you to do all the hard work without help, did you?"

"You're most generous, Kagami-san."

Deidara wanted to gag at his own response. Only, he was not in control of his body at all, even to do that. He _had_ to find a way out of this. And when he did, there would be hell to pay.

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They had stayed an additional night at the inn before they resumed their journey. It had taken Itachi that long to make up his mind about what he should do with Sasuke. His little brother could not come with them. Allowing Sasuke to travel along while he and Sakura searched for the Iwa missing nin and the miko would be foolish. Sasuke held no loyalty to them and would no doubt betray them for freedom.

Standing in the clearing in the forest just outside the village, Itachi observed as Sasuke studied his surroundings intently, no doubt planning his escape. Sakura, who was walking a few steps away, kept a close watch on Sasuke.

The younger nin suddenly looked at him challengingly, "What are you staring at?"

Remaining impassive, Itachi only continued to regard his little brother silently.

Sakura was less patient. "What's with that attitude of yours, Sasuke?" she ground out.

Sasuke snorted and then looked away. "It won't be an issue soon. I'm not planning on staying."

"No, you will not," Itachi answered simply.

Sakura gasped. "What?"

Sasuke's brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"You will be sent somewhere safe for your own protection."

Sasuke's expression darkened instantly. "No."

"He's not coming with us?" Sakura asked.

"No. He cannot be trusted." Yet, Itachi added silently.

"I'm not going anywhere!" Sasuke declared heatedly.

Ignoring his outburst, Itachi brought his hands together and executed a series of seals to activate the summoning technique.

"Kuchiyose-no-jutsu!"

A murder of crows exploded into existence. There were thirty of them, all spread out around the clearing while waiting for their orders. Itachi turned to Sasuke to find him taking in the sight with a disgusted look before turning around.

Mutinously, Sasuke said, "You cannot force me."

"I can," he stated mildly.

And with that, he activated one of his most powerful genjutsu techniques and caught Sasuke's eyes. His little brother sucked in a sharp breath and began to struggle, but it did not last long. In seconds, he was unconscious and would have fallen to the ground if the numerous crows had not caught his clothing in their beaks.

One of the crows fluttered toward him and Itachi extended an arm out for it to land on. Once there, it cawed. They always communicated telepathically and right now, the crow wanted to know Sasuke's destination.

Meeting the crow's questioning gaze, Itachi gave it the necessary instructions and then said, "Go now."

It emitted a loud caw and in the next moment, all of them were enveloped by a cloud of smoke. As the smoke dissipated, Itachi could not help but wonder if he was doing the right thing. It annoyed him that he was second-guessing his own decisions these days, but he supposed it could not be helped. He had learnt the painful lesson that he was not infallible.

The shuffle of footsteps interrupted his thoughts and made him turn to a contemplative Sakura.

"Why didn't you just send him back to Konoha?" she asked.

Fully expecting her question, he explained, "I wish to be present when he returns to Konoha. Undoubtedly, there will be a prolonged hearing for his crimes. I cannot afford to remain in Konoha now."

She frowned thoughtfully. "You want to protect him."

His first instinct was to deny it because such an admission revealed a weakness he preferred to keep hidden. And then he remembered his promise to himself and said, "Aa."

Her expression told him that she was mulling over his words. He wondered what she made of them. When she said nothing, he asked, "Shall we begin our journey? I believe the trail leads towards the west."

She suddenly averted her face. "Look. Do you mind waiting for a while? I need to do something first."

He searched her face in an attempt to see if she was being truthful. However, her time as a missing nin seemed to have perfected her mask. "Where?" he finally asked.

She frowned irritably. "Does it matter? This is private, and it has nothing to do with our deal. I need to keep my word to others as well."

"I'm merely concerned, Sakura."

She stared at him for a while, as if trying to decide something, and then she finally said, "I promise I'll be back in two hours at the most. Can you wait here, please?"

With an inward sigh, he relented. "I will search for you if you do not return by then."

She nodded and then performed the seals for a teleportation jutsu. In the next blink of his eyes, she was gone, leaving him in the clearing alone. With a sigh, he settled down against a wide tree trunk to wait for her.

Ironically, it seemed that their situation was reversed now. She used to be the one to wait for him. The memory of the many times she had done so wrenched at his chest, but one particular event stood out. It was the last time she had waited for him in their shared home.

_Itachi stilled once he had shut the front door behind him. From here, he could tell that Sakura was sleeping. Her breaths were deep and even, which meant that she would not awaken anytime soon._

_A few more silent steps took him past the dining area and he paused there, sweeping his eyes over the now-cold plates of food carefully laid out on the table. Guilt ate at him painfully as he thought of just how much work had gone into the preparation of such a feast. _

_An untouched feast for their first wedding anniversary. _

_He pinched the bridge of his nose. This charade had to end soon. It could not go on any longer. This situation was not fair to either of them. _

_Tomorrow morning, he would put a stop to it. He would tell her as much as she needed to know so she understood that by dissolving this farce, she would be better much off. She would have to be the one to put a stop to it, otherwise her name would always be associated with being jilted by the heir of the Uchiha. And in a place like Konoha, such a stigma would make things very awkward for her. _

_Suddenly, a flare of chakra caught his attention, and Itachi turned to find Sakura standing at the door to the bedroom with a grim expression on her face. She was dressed in her nightclothes, a black t-shirt with the Uzumaki emblem coupled with shorts that showed far too much of her slender legs. _

"_Itachi," she greeted stonily. "No, don't apologize for being late when you know fully well that you've done it on purpose." _

_So, he had been caught. Her expression told him that she must have realized that he had been deliberately avoiding her. It was quite ironic that she had chosen to confront him this way just as he had decided to do something about the situation. _

"_Guess this won't come as a surprise to you. We need to talk."_

_The phrase was a universally dreaded one amongst all men, and Itachi was not an exception to that rule, even though he had been expecting this for a while. The confrontation would be painful, but it was necessary. _

_She gestured to the couch. "Let's sit."_

_Without a word, he went to the couch and sat. Dimly, he recalled a happier time when all of them were seated on this couch, as evidenced by the group picture in Sasuke's room. _

"_You have been avoiding me," she accused directly and without any preamble. _

_Part of him was relieved that the old Sakura was back, that she had not been broken beyond repair by his neglect. He despised the way she had tried to mold herself to the Uchiha clan's expectations because it had all but eroded her own personality. However, part of him was saddened that this confrontation would completely end their association. _

"_Yes," he answered simply. _

_Expression filled with ire, she asked, "Why?"_

"_It should be obvious, Sakura."_

_She sucked in a sharp breath. "So, because you're too much of a coward to say it, I should do it for you?" she hissed. "You have some nerve!" _

_He said nothing. _

"_Fine! Have it your way." Fully riled now, and in such a magnificent way that his chest ached when he took the sight in, she held his eyes unflinchingly and said, "You only married me because you didn't want to say no to your father. It is no secret that he wants this because he wants the Uchiha to be closer Tsunade. You just obeyed him like a good little son. I get that you did it for your family, but you didn't even try to make it work. What's that all about? Hell, you can't make yourself consummate the marriage with me."_

_The need to correct her erroneous assumption was strong, but Itachi remained silent. This was the result he had been both seeking and fearing ever since she had accepted his proposal one and a half years ago. _

_Her cheeks were red now, and her chest was heaving as she glared at him. "A whole year of marriage, Itachi. I didn't take you as a coward, but obviously you are. Otherwise you'd have said no to this whole mess without dragging me into it. You sure had no intention of trying to make it work at all." _

_He simply continued to stare at her, his expression impassive._

"_Do you have any idea what I've gone through?" she asked heatedly. "The snickers in the street, the well-meant advice about getting pregnant?" She snorted derisively. "Maybe I should have told them that you're impotent, huh? Instead of embarrassing myself by keeping quiet and letting them assume you find me too distasteful to bed?" _

_Itachi closed his eyes briefly, finding it difficult to hold her eyes. He was the guilty party here, and he found it terribly unsettling. The urge to tell her the truth and comfort her was eating at him. _

"_You're barely at home. And I don't think we've had one decent conversation in the last year. A baby in that situation would be impossible." She glared at him. "Not that I want to have one with you. I wouldn't subject my own child to an emotionless absentee father like you." Her hands clenched tightly. "Then again, you don't need a wife at home at all now, do you? You take your entertainment elsewhere, after all."_

_Itachi hid his confusion. Surely she was not suspecting him of cheating. He was barely in Konoha, as she had said, after all. _

"_You sure don't need your wife when you have Mai warming your bed," she accused with a sneer. _

_Itachi blinked, surprised that she believed this ridiculous rumor. Uchiha Mai was not the sort of woman he found attractive at all. But that vicious-tongue cousin of his must have been spreading rumors. Still, if it assisted in the painful shattering of this bond between the two of them, he would not deny it. _

_She jumped to her feet, hands still clenched by her side as she glared at him. "Say something!" _

"_Hn."_

_Her jaws tightened. "That's all you have to say to me? After everything?!" _

_Itachi's eyes widened as she launched straight at him. Reflex had him bring his arms up in defense, but she merely slapped them away with her chakra-laden hands. The next thing he knew, she was straddling his lap and her fingers were around his neck. His Sharingan immediately flared to life at the threat. _

"_Release me," he bit out, carefully clamping his hands around her wrist as to not hurt her unduly. _

_Glaring at him, she held on tight. He could not remove her hold without resorting to something drastic, but that was unsurprising considering her superior strength, once chakra-enhanced, that was. Sakura had not come by the description of possessing monstrous strength lightly, after all. But although he had many ways to escape, if he was not careful, he could injure her badly. And that was the last thing he wanted to do. He refused to inflict more pain upon her. _

"_You're not going anywhere until I say so!" she snapped. "You owe it to me after this whole year of misery!" _

_He moved his hips to dislodge her as his Sharingan began to swirl. A mild genjutsu would be sufficient. _

_Before it could take hold, however, the chakra in the hands encircling his neck changed. It shifted its nature and shot straight into his brain, instantly halting the flow of his own chakra to his Sharingan. When he tried to move, his limbs refused to obey. _

_A real spike of fear coursed up his spine at the realization that he had been careless, and that he had underestimated the level of her fury. She was incensed enough to immobilize him completely, rendering him helpless to her whims. He could break out of it after a while, but in that time, she could do anything to him. The vulnerability was unsettling. Was she angry enough to kill him? It would only take a second for her to do so. _

_Her eyes were flickering over his face, as if she was uncertain. Her voice was a mere whisper when she said brokenly, "N-not so tough now, huh?" _

"_Do not do anything you'll regret, Sakura," he warned quietly. _

"_Regret? I regret many things," she said, leaving in no doubt that she referred to their marriage. "I regret not doing this sooner. I should have just said everything up front the first day I realized that you had no intention of going through with this marriage properly. You might be completely clueless, but I've had feelings for you for a while. And it hurt when you all but IGNORED me for the last year! Not that it would make any difference now. But I'm not taking any more of this shit from you." _

_His breath stuttered to a halt as her words sank in. She had feelings for him? This was unexpected. His brows drew together in a frown. How could he have missed it? But then again, he had not been around often enough to notice._

"_Sakura, I-"_

_She slammed a fist into the wall behind the couch, instantly cracking it. "Shut up! You don't get to talk now!" Her breath was jagged with emotions as she continued, "Before I fix things, I'm going to take something for myself."_

_What did she mean?_

_The next thing he knew, her head lowered towards his, and Itachi felt his breath catch in his throat. At the realization that she was going to kiss him, he understood that he wouldn't have willingly moved even if she had not immobilized him with her jutsu. He was shamed by his own weakness, but he was unable find the willpower to break out of her hold. _

_Her lips were hesitant when she touched him, but Itachi's eyes shut at the contact. Soft lips moved against him as her breath caressed him. Slender fingers dug into his scalp and sent tingles up his spine and he could hardly comprehend just how easily she was arousing him. _

_She deepened the kiss and he shivered as her tongue touched his. Her movements were bold and unrestrained now, but he had no cause for complaint. The pleasure he was subjected to was heady, it clouded his mind and yet it was something he willingly accepted, despite his usual aversion to loss of control. _

_And then she jerked away suddenly, and eyed him as if she was repulsed. Something within him broke at the sight, but he did not allow himself to betray his emotions. He deserved her hostility after the appalling manner in which he had treated her. No decent man would neglect one's wife as he had done. Perhaps, one day she would look back and be thankful that this union did not go any further. _

_But she had said that she had feelings for him…_

"_Now, that is a little bit of what you'll be missing, you bastard!" _

_She jumped off him and walked away, leaving him still immobilized on the couch. A moment later, she exited their bedroom, the bedroom that he had not slept in for a year, with a scroll. It was a storage scroll, one she must have packed before he got home. She must have expected to leave even before their confrontation. His heart twisted at the thought. _

_At the front door, she paused. Without facing him, she said in a steady voice. "Consider our marriage over." _

_And then she left. _

_He allowed his head to sag back against the couch as he expelled a long breath, ignoring the ache in his neck and several other places lower on his body. It looked as if he needn't speak to the Hokage, after all. After a long year, he had finally achieved what he had set out to do. _

_The success only made him feel hollow inside. _

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A/N: And that concludes chapter 12. Hope you liked it. Please review!

:elle6778:


	14. Chapter 13

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Many thanks to all who reviewed!

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Chapter 13**

"I'm sort of… working with Itachi now."

"WHAT?!"

Sakura winced at the volume of her friend's voice. "There's no need to shout, Baka!" she snapped and whacked his head.

"Mou, Sakura-chan!" Naruto complained as he rubbed the back of his head. "You're getting more and more violent every time I see you. What's up with you?"

Surely he was exaggerating. But she had to admit that sometimes, the things he said compelled her to inflict pain on him. Oh well. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited for him to calm down. There was not much time left before she ran out of chakra completely. Summoning Naruto was draining and fortunately he did not resist, otherwise all her efforts would be wasted.

When his troubled blue eyes met hers again, he asked, "What do you mean, you're working with Itachi? I thought he wants to force you back to Konoha?"

Shaking her head, she refuted, "No. We have an agreement, so he's holding off on that until we finish our task."

"Task?" He scratched his head. "What task?"

"Finding Deidara."

Naruto's eyes bugged. "He's missing? What the hell is going on?"

"Don't over react, alright?" she cautioned.

"Tell me already!"

"We found Sasuke."

Naruto froze. Then, "H-How?"

Sakura took a deep breath and began to outline the events which had occurred over the past weeks. As she spoke, Naruto grew more and more agitated, which was a clear sign of his worry for her. But when she came to the part where they had encountered Sasuke raising his hand to the sky amidst the strikes of lightning, the blond shinobi paled significantly.

"That sounds like a stupid thing to do. Is he okay?"

She nodded. "He had a bit of chakra exhaustion when we got to him, but he's fine now." Physically, at least, she added inwardly. But she did not have the heart to tell Naruto that.

Naruto sucked in a sharp breath. "He's with you right now?"

Sakura looked around pointedly and raised a brow. "No," she said flatly.

"You know what I mean, Sakura-chan!" he cried out, throwing his arms up in the air.

She could not help but grin. "Itachi sent him somewhere… safe."

"Not Konoha."

"Not for a while. He's staying hidden until we find out what happened to him all these years. In the meantime, we'll be looking for Deidara."

Naruto scowled. "What for? Just leave that bastard to rot wherever he is."

"Naruto…" she warned.

"Fine… fine. No need to get all worked up over it." He made a face. "I just don't get what you see in him."

"He's important to me, alright," she snapped, irritated that they were going through this same debate again. Sometimes she wondered if Naruto was simply jealous.

"I still don't get it but I guess you're just going to ignore whatever I say." Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Naruto continued, "I can't believe Itachi is actually helping you look for a missing nin. He's usually so uptight about rules."

She was not so sure about that. "He has his own agenda. Remember what I told you about the stuff Sasuke got out of the sky in Lightning?" At his nod, she continued, "Well, Itachi's on a mission to get hold of all those fragments. Two have been found, as far as I can tell. I don't know much about them because apparently Tsunade wants to keep the whole thing quiet."

"That's why I haven't heard anything about stone fragments. But how could Baa-chan keep this from me?" Naruto cried plaintively.

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. "She has her reasons, I'm sure. If you have a chance, can you find out what's going on with the whole situation and let me know?"

"Sasuke's not talking?"

"No."

Naruto's brows furrowed. "Why the hell not?"

She closed her eyes. Perhaps keeping things from her friend was not such a good idea after all. Naruto had always been open with her. So, in a soft voice, she told him, "Actually, Sasuke doesn't remember us."

He blinked slowly. "What?"

"He has some sort of memory loss, though medically I can't seem to find anything wrong inside his head. He's been inapproachable and hostile, treating us like strangers."

Naruto groaned out loud. "I can't believe that idiot. What has he gotten himself mixed up with? And what's with the memory loss?"

"I don't know what has caused it so I can't fix it. But once we get Sasuke back to Konoha, I'm sure Tsunade-shishou would be able to do something about it."

"Yeah." A worried look crossed his face then. "Ne, Sakura-chan. Tsunade-sama will be pissed at us when she finds out the truth."

"Tell me about it." And then she gave him a stern look. "But she doesn't need to know you're involved. All evidence points to the fact that I ran away on my own."

Naruto's expression hardened. "That's not the way it's going to happen, Sakura. There's no way I'm going to let you take the fall on your own."

Suddenly Naruto's form rippled and alarm shot through Sakura. She had been so involved in the conversation that she had lost track of time. A long time had passed since she had summoned Naruto and only now she was realizing that her chakra was draining away at a distressing rate. She had to end this.

Eyes wide when he caught on to the circumstances, Naruto cried out, "I need to go. But wait…"

Sakura gasped as he reached out to pull out the cherry blossom pendant from her top, his calloused fingers grazing her skin. She was about to swat his fingers away when his chakra surged through the pendant. Just as quickly, he took away his hand and stepped back, grinning widely at her.

"What was that?" she asked, tentatively touching the pendant.

"A bit of my chakra to help you out the next time you need something extra. It's always linked to me, so I'd know when you use it. You can use it to summon me so that we can spend more time together."

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "It's not some sort of tracking device, is it?"

He chuckled sheepishly. "Maybe just a little bit. Ja ne!"

Before she could respond, he exploded in a cloud of smoke, leaving her to glare into the space where he had stood only a second ago. Reaching up, she touched the pendant. Naruto had all but implied that this necklace she was wearing was capable of informing him of her whereabouts. What was it with these people trying to keep track of her? First it was Deidara and now Naruto?

With an exasperated huff, she dropped her hands and made a beeline for where she had left Itachi a couple of miles away. She supposed she did not really mind Naruto knowing where she was. There was no one she trusted more, anyway. Kakashi and Deidara came close but Naruto would always be her best friend.

She frowned at the thought of Deidara. Something was clearly wrong with him and she could not help but wonder if the same thing affected Sasuke. The Deidara she had encountered did not show any signs of recognition when she called out to him, after all. Had he lost his memories the same way as Sasuke?

She grimaced. Tsunade might be persuaded to heal Sasuke but she did not think that there was any chance of getting her to help an Iwa nukenin, especially one who had been travelling with her ex-apprentice. She had to think about how she should approach the problem once they found Deidara.

000

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Itachi watched silently as Sakura stepped into the clearing, late by a quarter of an hour. When the two hours mark had come and passed, he had been flooded by the urge to hunt for her, but had eventually persuaded himself to be patient.

"Sorry I'm late," she muttered absently.

He refrained from asking her where she had been and why her chakra level was so low. And more importantly, he thought as he narrowed his eyes on the pendant resting on her chest, why he could sense a very vague hint of a certain jinchuuriki's chakra. He had noticed the chain around her neck before but he had never seen the cherry-blossom-shaped pendant as it had always been hidden under her clothing. Was the pendant something she had just obtained or had she been wearing it all this time?

"Should we go now?" she asked, oblivious to his thoughts.

He inclined his head and then began to head west. What did the presence of Naruto's chakra mean? The obvious answer was that they had been in contact earlier. It implied that Naruto had known about Sakura's true status all this time and, as difficult as it was to grasp, managed to keep this from Konoha.

Who else in Konoha knew that Sakura was still alive? If Naruto knew, then it was likely that Kakashi did as well. Team 7 was very close and it would not surprise Itachi if all of them had planned her disappearance ahead of time. The team was well-known for their inability to follow rules and the members had always done as they pleased.

Itachi was not sure how he should take this. His first instinct was to remain silent and observe, but judging from his past failure when it came to the application of this method on anything related to Sakura, perhaps that was not such a good option. Being direct seemed to yield better results.

In a carefully modulated voice, he told her, "I sense Naruto's chakra."

She stopped suddenly, prompting him to do the same. A sideways glance told him that she was staring straight ahead, her features carefully blank. He would know soon if she trusted him enough to be honest.

Eventually, she replied in a soft voice, "Can you just forget about it? I don't want to get him into trouble."

Itachi sighed inwardly. She still did not trust him but at least she was not lying to him, which was an improvement. Perhaps this was not the time to press the issue and in turn, cause a set back on the progress he had made so far. He would broach the subject another time.

Deciding to change the topic, he said, "We will be moving west."

She stared at him for a while, and then a small smile curved her lips. "Alright. Let's go."

And in that moment, Itachi realized that he had finally broken through a layer of her invisible barrier. Feeling uplifted despite knowing that they would face trouble when they found their target, he began to move west.

000

000

Having travelled for two days, only resting long enough to ensure that they were not overstrained, they were now in the Land of Frost. This was their second break of the day after travelling for more than six hours and Itachi had chosen a high ground with a good vantage point.

Sakura was sitting cross-legged on a cold slab of rock with a metal cup of cold tea between her hands. It had been boiling hot just ten minutes ago, but the air was so cold that it took no time at all for the heat to dissipate. Shrugging deeper into her cloak, she stared over the edge of the frost-covered cliff where the sight of the jagged landscape bathed in the reddish glow of the setting sun reminded her of Earth Country's mountain ranges.

Turning to Itachi, who was slowly chewing on an onigiri they had bought earlier from a village during their first break, she commented, "Something just occurred to me. Remember what you told me about how you think only one fragment can be found at a time? You mentioned that Gaara found the first tablet in Wind Country. Sasuke found the next one in Lightning. And now we're heading for Earth Country. There is a pattern there."

From his seated position against a rock, he murmured, "Aa."

Something told her that he had arrived at the same conclusion as she had. "So the order of appearance follows the cyclic pattern of the elements. Which means that after this one, the next fragment will appear in Water Country or Wave or somewhere with lots of water."

Itachi finished his onigiri before nodding. "That's very likely."

She eyed him curiously. "So when did you figure this out?"

"When I realized that the trail leads to Earth Country." He stood up to scan their surroundings. "The Hokage has been informed of this development."

She exhaled in relief. "So Tsunade will station someone in Water Country to watch out for the next fragment?"

"I assume so." His eyes went to her. "May I have some tea, please?"

She blinked and then glanced down at his empty metal cup before looking back up at him. "Where is yours?"

"I finished it."

Eh? Somehow it was hard to imagine Itachi being too lazy to make himself another cup. After all, it had taken him no time at all to heat the water up for their tea earlier.

"The tea, Sakura?"

"Oh."

She held it out to him and watched as he took it and sipped. The exchange seemed oddly intimate, even though they were only sharing a drink. She had shared drinks often enough with her teammates and Deidara, and even others but never with Itachi.

"Thank you," he said as he returned the bamboo canister to her.

Feeling inexplicably uncomfortable, she took it and looked away from him. "It's fine."

Exhaling loudly, she gave herself a mental shake. Why was she reacting so strangely? What was wrong with her?

"Is something the matter?" he asked.

"No! No," she said a little too quickly. She needed to distract herself. Glancing up at him, she asked, "How is Sasuke doing?"

His onyx orbs searched her face, as if to determine if she was hiding something. After a while, he replied wryly, "I've been informed by my summons that he is uncooperative."

She rolled her eyes. "That's such a surprise."

"Sasuke could be difficult if he wishes to be."

"Ha! Tell me about it." And then realizing that this was one of the rare times Itachi offered his opinion on something, she asked, "But you were pretty close before he disappeared, weren't you?"

Itachi took on a faraway expression. "Aa." After a brief pause, he added, "We train together sometimes."

"You miss him," she murmured in realization.

"He is my only brother," was all Itachi said.

She did not know how she should respond to that. When she had realized that Sasuke did not remember her, it was bewildering and in some way, painful. It must be doubly difficult for Itachi.

Speaking of difficult, now that Itachi had come clean about everything, she was beginning to understand just how difficult he must have felt back then. He had all but admitted that if it had not been his relationship with Sasuke, things would turn out very differently for their marriage. But what exactly did his confession mean for them now? She _had_ moved on. And besides, these weeks with him told her that she did not really know Itachi all that well. In fact, what she had felt for him back then was probably just an infatuation which had sprouted from admiration. She had admired the idea of Itachi even though she knew nothing of him apart from what one could see on the surface.

Did she feel anything for him now? How could she, when she was interested in Deidara in that way? Was it possible for her to have feelings for two men? That made her seem awfully immature and flighty.

She groaned out loud.

"What's the matter?"

Her head jerked up to find Itachi eyeing her with concern. Lately, it would seem that he never missed anything when it came to her. She would have appreciated this attention more when they had been married. Right now, it just confused her and made her question things she should not even be thinking of.

She had to deflect again. "Just thinking about Sasuke. You're planning on taking him back to Konoha eventually, right?"

"Aa."

"What do you think would happen then?" she asked.

"That depends on Sasuke."

"On his memory?"

"In some ways." He studied her for a while and then looked out into the darkening sky. "If he hadn't remained away from Konoha of his own will, then any punishment would be minor."

Sakura grimaced at his unspoken implication. If Sasuke had left willingly like her, then the severity of the punishment would be higher. And for her, the day of reckoning was looming closer and closer. The clock would start ticking once they rescued Deidara. If they did not manage to rescue Deidara, she would have more time, but for what? It was not as if there was anything else for her out here if Deidara was not with her and Sasuke was back in Konoha. Besides, she could not see Itachi giving up. No matter what it took, he would make sure that he fulfilled the terms of the agreement.

"Come."

Jolted out of her contemplations by Itachi, she looked up. He inclined his head to the west wordlessly.

She had to stop over-thinking things. Getting to her feet and brushing the ice away from her clothing, she hopped off the rock. "Let's go."

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Deidara eyed the tall kunoichi thoughtfully. She wore a white headband which held her short light brown hair away from her eyes. Her entire appearance was nondescript, too average for his artistic side to take any interest but with his consciousness stuck inside his own wayward physical body, he could do nothing but watch the play of events before him.

At the moment, Kagami was serving the new girl tea from a bamboo canister. This was not the first time, either. Each time they took a break, Kagami would offer her the tea and the idiot would drink the stuff.

Deidara snorted inwardly, calling her all kinds to stupid. Yeah, sure he had succumbed to the same thing, but he had to be _forced_. This kunoichi was just sitting there like she was at some damned tea party. How pathetic. Wasn't she supposed to be some cunning missing nin from Mist? Mist clearly produced sub-grade nins if their missing nin was so clueless.

"Thank you so much for agreeing to do this. It may just be paranoia, but sometimes I think there's someone… stalking me," Kagami said conversationally. "Do you know what I mean, Hisame-san? Have you felt like that before?"

Lowering the bamboo canister from her lips, the brown-haired kunoichi said, "Yes, I have. It's better to be cautious, so I don't think there's anything wrong with that."

Deidara rolled his eyes. If she was so cautious, then she wouldn't have succumbed to the miko's manipulations. She would have been more suspicious when the miko approached her a few days ago to procure her services as an escort, spouting some damned story about how it was dangerous to travel so far west without protection.

Kagami smiled.

The girl frowned thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, I don't think you're being paranoid. I do sense something trailing us."

Deidara hoped that it was true, and the one doing the trailing was Sakura. However, what was the likelihood of that after the way his physical body had all but ignored her? Knowing Sakura, she would be hurt and angry at his dismissal. Damn it! He wanted to kill the miko! She was destroying everything with this stupid plot of hers.

Kagami gasped, her eyes widening in apparent alarm. "Oh no! Are we in danger?"

"There's no malevolent intent, but it's hard to tell for sure."

Sighing, Kagami said, "I wish this boy here is more intimidating."

Deidara bristled indignantly while his body slumped lower. _This_ _boy_ would gladly rip her head off her neck with his bare hands! The separation of his consciousness and his body was the only thing which was stopping him from demonstrating just how intimidating he could be when he set his mind to it. But right now, all everyone saw was a blond peasant dressed in a drab grey yukata. The miko's hold on him meant that he could not object to the change in his clothing or the fact that his face constantly displayed a sickeningly meek expression.

"Don't worry, Kagami-san. I will handle things for you." The girl gave her a pointed look. "For a nominal fee, of course."

Kagami waved her hand dismissively. "As long as you can ensure my safety, I'm happy to pay you."

The kunoichi smiled and then sipped the tea again.

Deidara wondered just how many more sips it would take for her to end up like him.

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They were once again travelling through the Land of Hot Water where the air was thick with humidity from the numerous hot springs the country was famous for. Still, it was a nice change from the frigidity of the Land of Frost. Unfortunately, Itachi knew that the pleasantness would not last. Their final destination was Earth Country where the temperature was high and the air overly dry.

He slid a sideways glance at a pensive Sakura and wondered what she was thinking. She had been quieter than usual ever since they entered this country. Their interaction over the past week or so had been civilized, pleasant almost. She was no longer wary of his every move, something which he welcomed wholeheartedly. Despite that, he still sensed that she meant to keep a distance between them. It could not be helped, he supposed. After his betrayal, it would take time for her to learn to trust him.

"Can you stop that?"

He blinked once. "Pardon?"

She shot an irritated look at him. "You're staring."

In a mild one, he returned frankly, "I'm merely wondering if you could eventually bring yourself to trust me."

She tensed visibly. "I don't know," she muttered as she continued to move forward. "I can't think about that now."

"Aa."

As always, the topic of their personal relationship was an unwelcomed one for her. He only wished that he possessed just a fraction of the charm that his cousin Shisui did. Shisui would definitely be able to break past her invisible wall. If he had the opportunity, perhaps he should discuss the situation with his cousin.

"It's still a little hard to take in, the fact that it was all an act," she murmured. "You were pretty convincing. Not sure if I want discuss it at all…"

In a quiet voice, he interjected, "It isn't my intention to make you uncomfortable."

A furrow appeared between her brows as she fell silent. They continued to walk, threading past the numerous trees with soundless steps. He understood that communication was a way to build trust but how was he meant to achieve such a thing when she did not want to talk?

"Do you mind if I speak while we travel?" he asked.

She gave him a puzzled look. "Huh?"

He looked away, focusing at a particular tree in the distance. Baring himself in the way he was planning to do was not something he usually did, but it did not feel so awkward when it was Sakura.

"Speak about what?" she prompted.

"About what I stopped myself from saying when we were living together."

"I don't think you can classify what we did as _living together_," she pointed out drily. "You were hardly home. Remember there was this spotty stray cat that appeared sometimes for food? I think she was there more often than you."

And now she compared him to a stray feline?

"Hm."

He was about to tell her of his thoughts the first time he ate her cooking when the almost imperceptible shift in the air broke into his mind. Silently, he raised a hand and Sakura tensed beside him.

In the next moment, something sliced through the air.

He twisted and with a flick of his katana, knocked away the three kunai headed for his head. His Sharingan was activated by the time a brown-haired kunoichi stepped into sight in a nearby clearing in the forest.

"My, my… I didn't realize what a looker you are," she drawled.

"Who are you?" Itachi asked quietly.

The kunoichi smirked as she twirled a kunai around a finger. "You don't get to ask questions, pretty boy."

He studied her person. The slash on her white hitai-ate denoted her as a missing nin from Kirigakure. Although the Hidden Village of Mist was not exactly an ally of Konoha, Itachi could not see a reason for one of their missing nins to launch an attack.

Sakura stepped forward. "What do you want?"

The kunoichi's eyes narrowed. "Your heads."

"What the hell?" Sakura muttered, looking offended. "You come out of nowhere and now you're threatening us? Are you insane?"

She shrugged. "Who knows? Insane or not, both of you will be dying today."

"Why you…" Sakura snarled.

Itachi reached out and caught her arm before she could charge forward. They knew nothing of this opponent and it would be foolish to attack directly. "Just wait."

The nukenin rolled her eyes. "That's not going to help you. I'm not the patient type."

Itachi said nothing.

"Well, here goes," the kunoichi called out. "Kuchiyose-no-jutsu!"

The air vibrated with energy before an enormous cloud of smoke appeared.

Eyes gleaming, the kunoichi announced, "Meet my partners."

Itachi's eyes widened slightly as two large forms appeared out of the cloud of smoke. Even from this distance, he could perceive their ridiculously high chakra levels and it warned him that this would not be a simple battle. Their scaled bodies were large, towering up past the canopy of trees above, the red-scaled one larger than the green-scaled one. Steam escaped their nostrils as they breathed down menacingly.

Dragons.

In all his years as a shinobi, Itachi had never seen dragons being summoned. But even though he did not know the full extent of their capabilities, he could safely presume that their attacks would difficult to counter.

The larger one swung its red-scaled head towards the kunoichi and rumbled deeply, "Hisame. What's the meaning of this?"

She smirked. "I need you to get rid of them."

"Hmmm…" the green one rumbled. "This is beneath us but I suppose it won't take us too long. Yes, Ryuujin?"

The larger red dragon snorted, emitting smoke from its nostrils. "As long as you don't get in my way, Tatsu. I'm feeling quite hungry today."

Then it shifted its golden eyes to Sakura and that prompted Itachi into action. Before Sakura could react, he moved between her and the dragon.

"I'm your opponent," Itachi announced quietly, looking up at the beast.

"Itachi!"

Ignoring Sakura's yell, the dragon named Ryuujin peered down at him with an expression akin to a sneer. "Why not?" It swung his head towards his summoner. "Hisame, dead or alive?"

Malice gleaming in her eyes, Hisame replied, "Dead, of course."

The dragon did not waste any time. With a roar, its wings expanded and flapped, bringing it into the air. Itachi tensed to move just as a stream of fire shot from its gaping jaws and headed straight towards him. A blink of an eye later, he substituted himself with a nearby log which immediately went up in flames. The speed of the attack was faster than he had expected.

As his scaled opponent swept up into the sky to find a better vantage point, Itachi heard the woman yell, "Tatsu, help Ryuujin corner him!"

"Hai."

Itachi caught a flash of green just before a ball of fire hit the ground not far from him. He leapt into the air, springing from a tree branch to another. From the periphery of his vision, he could see Sakura chasing after the green dragon who was trying to hit him with more fireballs.

"Not so fast, little girl!" Hisame yelled.

A water-based technique in the shape of a serpent rushed towards Sakura, forcing her to turn around. It was just as well, Itachi thought. This way, she would not be in the path of the dragons' attacks.

"Worried about your friend?" the green dragon mocked as it released a volley of small fireballs from the air. "She will be dead soon enough."

Bringing his hands together, Itachi executed a water jutsu, sending a wall of water up in the air to obstruct the fireballs. They connected with the shimmering barrier and were immediately extinguished. Before Itachi could counterattack, a shift in the air sent his senses on high alert. He leapt high into the air just as a large red tail slammed into the ground where he had been standing just a second ago.

Both dragons were attacking him at once. Knowing that he could not afford to remain still, he moved in an apparently erratic path, avoiding open areas so that he was protected under the thick canopy of trees. It was the most sensible move as the dense foliage meant limited mobility for the beasts' large bodies.

The sound of fire hitting the treetops told him that the dragons understood his intent and were now attempting to switch the situation to their favor. As he zigzagged between the trees, he reached into his weapons pouch. His idea might not hold them off for long, but it was worth a try. Battling both of them at the same time was not an option, so he had to take one out first. Rapidly, he completed his plan and then waited for the outcome.

The thick scent of burning vegetation and sudden thundering sounds ahead told him that the dragons had abandoned their aerial attack and were now pursuing him on ground. Rapidly, he backtracked, taking care to hide his presence.

Not long afterwards, the enraged screech of a dragon told him that one had been ensnared. Halting, Itachi turned around to find the green dragon trapped in crisscrossing thin wires he had strung between the trees. Comprehending the danger in the area, the other dragon abandoned its comrade. Its red-scaled body disappeared into the sky but Itachi knew that it would return for another attack once it gained its bearings.

Not far away, the thin wires stretched taut as the green dragon attempted to free itself. Erratic streams of fire burst from its mouth as it bellowed and trashed in futility. Without pause, Itachi flung his katana at the summoned beast. It cut through the air briefly before it pierced through the dragon's thick skin, eliciting a howl of pain from the beast. The ground shook as it fell down, but Itachi knew that the battle was far from over. Even with the katana sticking out of its chest, the green dragon still attempted to remove the blade. Fortunately, it realized the ineffectiveness of his actions and with a roar, dissolved into a cloud of smoke and returned to its realm.

A short distance away, he could see Sakura throwing up an earth wall to block the other kunoichi's water attack. Earth and water collided with a crash and slumped to the ground in a large pool of mud. Sakura streaked forward in an attempt to get close enough to use her superior close-quarter combat skills.

"You don't have time to worry about the little girl!" a rumble came from above. "And I'm not as stupid as Tatsu."

The red dragon's words refocused his attention and the next thing he knew, an enormous stream of fire was coming at him from the sky. Itachi executed a replacement jutsu, once again allowing a log to be burnt to a crisp in his place. Reappearing on a tree branch high up, he expelled his own fireball at the dragon.

The large orb streamed past the dragon harmlessly.

Needing a confirmation, he released another fire jutsu, only to receive the same result. So it seemed that the dragon was impervious to fire attacks, something that placed Itachi at a disadvantage since his dominant elemental affinity was fire. He could summon his crows, but he doubted that the crows would be much help. They specialized in espionage, not real-time battle. Even if he was to summon the largest, strongest crow, it would not help.

The red dragon descended into a nearby clearing and swept its long red-scaled tail in an arc, felling trees and forcing Itachi to leap midair to avoid being slammed into. Suspended in the air, he released a water jutsu straight at the larger dragon's head. The creature roared as it expelled a stream of fire which evaporated the water with a loud hiss, turning the area damp with steam.

Itachi immediately bounded backwards away from the dragon, but the widespread steam stung his exposed skin and limited his visibility. Feeding more chakra into his Sharingan, he scanned the area. The dragon was stationary but he could tell from the intensity of chakra flow in the beast's body that it was preparing for its next attack.

When the attack came, it was in the form of another large eruption of fire. More trees around them burst into flames as Itachi raced away. Fire seared through his cloak and he could feel his flesh burning. A rapid series of seals followed and he managed to drench himself with a flood of water before he was completely incapacitated.

Taking cover behind a rock, he inspected the damage even though it was difficult to focus past the pain. The entire length of his side was a reddened mass. He had no choice but to ignore the pain and put an end to this battle.

"Itachi!"

His attention was drawn to Sakura, who had clearly seen what had happened and was attempting to reach his side. The disruption to her concentration could be fatal as the other kunoichi was currently attacking her with a deluge of shuriken.

In a hard voice, he commanded, "Focus on your battle, Sakura."

She stilled abruptly, and then with a grimace, she turned back. The brown-haired nukenin brought her hands together for another jutsu just as Itachi turned away. The dragon was shooting smaller fireballs at him now and the frequency was too rapid for him to avoid them by a mere substitution jutsu.

"This way, Ryuujin! Now!"

Itachi's eyes widened at the command and turned to find Sakura struggling to escape the bands of water restraining her. The dragon spun around at his summoner's order and snarled. Fire shot out of its open mouth and headed straight for Sakura.

She was completely exposed.

Knowing that he only had a split second to react, Itachi disappeared in a cloud of transportation jutsu. He appeared in the path of the fire and threw up a water barrier.

The dragon's fire attack crashed into him and at this proximity, the strength of the attack was completely undiluted. Even as he braced himself and flooded more chakra into the wall of water, he knew that it was a matter of time before his barrier was compromised. The question was, would he survive the remaining blast of fire?

After what seemed like an eternity, when all that lingered was steam, Itachi fell to his knees. The searing pain engulfed his entire body and he fought to remain conscious. Black dots were dancing in his vision but he could not afford to be vulnerable, not when the threat was still at large.

So, despite knowing that he would have to pay the price later, he brought his shaky hands together.

"Amaterasu."

In the next second, fingers of black fire raced towards the snarling dragon. Itachi's last view before he lost the fight to stay conscious was the sight of the black fire licking up the dragon's body.

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A/N: One more chapter done! Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review if you could. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	15. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

AN: Thanks for reading and reviewing the previous chapter! Here's the next one.

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 14<strong>

**(Beta: littleredcoat)**

"NO!" Sakura cried out in horror.

With a burst of chakra, she broke free of the water bindings. Dark flames were swallowing the dragon but the sight of Itachi lying still on the ground not far away made her feel sick. Even from here, she could tell that he was badly burnt. She would have broken free in time, so why did he interfere? He had all but flung himself in the path of the fire. She was only waiting to catch the Mist nin off guard. How could he have misread the situation so badly? Granted, he didn't know much about her current abilities, but surely he realized that she couldn't have survived out here as a missing nin without some skills.

"Ryuujin! Dismiss yourself!" Hisame ordered the creature, desperation tinting her tone. "Hurry!"

"C-can't! I'm trapped," it roared, thrashing in pain. "No! NO!"

Sakura was torn between rushing to Itachi's side and taking advantage of this opening he had created for her. In the end, the latter won out. Resolutely _not_ looking at Itachi, she went through a series of seals. Her chakra output had to be just correct, she reminded herself as she fed it to her feet.

"RYUUJIN!"

The dragon roared its final breath.

With a surge of chakra, Sakura released her technique. A rumble sounded and in the next breath, the ground beneath Hisame shot upwards and swallowed the kunoichi, rendering her immobile. Sakura wanted her alive because she needed some questions answered. Like why the hell she had attacked them.

Outraged, the Mist kunoichi shrieked and thrashed. Pulses of chakra radiated from her, and to Sakura's alarm, the earth encasement gave slightly.

"How dare you? Now you will pay!" Hisame spat furiously as she freed her arms.

With a fling of those arms, a long band of water resembling a whip snapped towards Sakura. She leapt out of the way and landed on a tree branch. Being trapped from chest down did not stop Hisame from using her whip, but the range of attack was severely limited.

"Enough!" Sakura warned as she landed right behind the half-buried kunoichi.

It was then that a shimmering figure appeared. Sakura's eyes widened in recognition when the body solidified.

It was the miko. Was she the one pulling the strings?

There was a weird pressure in the air, and the next thing Sakura knew it felt as if something invisible was squashing all the breath out of her. Before she could react, she found herself flying through the air. She crashed into a tree trunk and slid down to the ground. Knowing that she could not afford to remain idle, she pushed herself up to her feet.

Pain lanced through her, making her gasp and fall back down to her knees. Gritting her teeth as her eyes watered, she ran a shaky chakra-filled hand over her body. Mentally, she catalogued her injuries and tried not to panic at the level of damage done. None of these injuries was un-healable so she would just have to bear the pain until she got rid of the miko. Then she would deal with both hers and Itachi's wounds.

It was slow, but she managed to get to her feet and hold her katana ready in front of her as she backtracked.

The miko, Kagami, was where she'd last seen her. Somehow, the golden-eyed redhead had managed to disable the jutsu and a dirt-streaked Hisame now rested on top of the mound of earth.

"Tsk, tsk… You're all beaten up, you poor girl," the miko murmured as she picked Hisame up.

"Kagami," Sakura hissed in anger as she stumbled forwards. "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

Kagami raised a brow. Mildly, she chided, "Now, now. You're hardly in a state to fight me. And I need to heal this girl before she dies. I'm afraid she was caught in the crossfire when I dealt you that blow."

She would kill her. Determination filled Sakura as she charged chakra to her katana and forced herself to move despite her injuries. The miko's arms were occupied with the kunoichi, so if she could get close enough…

Smiling condescendingly, Kagami said, "Don't waste your efforts."

"Where's my partner?" Sakura snarled.

"The blond?" Kagami raised a brow. "You're trailing me for that boy?"

"Why don't you let him go?" Sakura ground out. "What do you want with him?"

"I want his abilities. Don't worry. You'll get him back." The miko smirked. "Eventually. So stop following me, or you'll live to regret it."

And then she and the Mist nukenin melted out of sight.

"Damn it!" Sakura cried as her strength gave way and she fell, thumping the ground with her fist in frustration.

After the adrenaline rush from the fight faded, she found that she could do nothing but groan in pain as she curled into herself. It took her sometime to dredge up enough willpower to force herself to move. Her head pounded and her vision kept blacking out. But what was the worst was the throbbing pain surrounding her entire body. Even though it had only been a single blow, that strange attack of the miko's had taken too much out of her.

With great difficulty, she managed to crawl towards Itachi. When she reached him, she ran a glowing hand over his body. Her inspection only confirmed that she needed to get him somewhere safe to heal him. The level of damage to his body told her that he would not be waking up anytime soon. It was just as well because the pain would be unbearable.

To her dismay, she realized that as long as she was in this state they were not going anywhere. But she couldn't just stay here. Neither of them was in a condition to protect themselves.

But Naruto had given her something, hadn't he? What did he mean when he said it would help? Kuchiyose-no-jutsu was out of the question in her condition. Any disruption during the technique could mean that she only summoned parts of him and she refused to risk Naruto's well being. But what else could she do? What was the necklace capable of? Reaching up, she focused on the pendant just to see how it would react.

Naruto's powerful chakra washed over her briefly.

And then nothing.

Dropping her hand, she sighed in defeat. What should she do now? She estimated that she had enough chakra to heal the worst of either hers or Itachi's wounds but not both. If she healed her broken bones but not anything else, she should have enough strength to move Itachi to someplace safe. If she healed Itachi's burns, there was no guarantee that he would wake up to move himself _and_ her. His burn wounds were too severe.

Mind made up, she reached down and began to heal her legs. Pain lanced through her as her bones knitted together. Medics usually numbed the area first but she could not afford to waste her chakra. The process was slower than she liked, but her chakra output was more sluggish than usual.

When she'd healed the bones in both legs and one arm, she reached out for Itachi. His brows were furrowed as if he was in pain even though he was unconscious. Maybe just a little, she thought as she located the worst of his burns and began the healing process. By the time she stopped, she knew that she'd used up more chakra than she'd wanted to.

Groaning, she hefted him up on one shoulder and stood up on trembling legs.

It seemed like forever before she gathered enough balance to start walking. All she could do by that point was concentrate on putting one foot in front of another to find somewhere safe for them to rest.

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When Itachi woke up, it was to a sensation of excruciating pain piercing through his right eye and a soreness throughout his left side. Clamping the offending eye shut as he hissed through gritted teeth, he surveyed his bandaged leg with his open eye. Sakura had done this? He wasn't sure what condition his leg was in, even though it seemed that she had managed to take the worst of the pain away. Having suffered burns before, he knew that it should be worse than what he was feeling.

He had intercepted an attack meant for Sakura, so where was she? The ragged sound of someone breathing drew his attention, and he turned to the side slowly to find Sakura slumped on the ground nearby. He could tell by her pallor that she was exhausted. What condition was she in? He attempted to activate his Sharingan, but the trickle of blood sliding down his cheek warned him to cease. Frustrated, he could only stare at the unconscious form next to him while he mulled over his next move. Reaching over, he placed a palm against her forehead. She was feverish.

What to do now?

Slowly, he pushed himself up onto his elbows and studied their surroundings. They were in a cave, and from the level of humidity, he deduced that they must still be in the Country of Hot Spring.

Suddenly, he noticed that they were not alone and immediately tensed.

He'd sensed nothing of the other shinobi's presence even though he sat not far away, hidden within the shadows of the cave entrance. The level of skill one must possess to achieve such a feat was astounding. At the moment Itachi found himself rather envious, which for him was a rather novel experience.

The figure stood up and left the security of the shadows. Even though there was a smile on his lips, Itachi could see that it was forced.

"You're finally awake."

Itachi nodded, sliding a glance at Sakura before settling his gaze upon the other shinobi. "You saved us?" he asked.

A sheepish grin covered Naruto's whiskered face. "Nah. Sakura-chan did most of the hard work. The two of you were almost here by the time I found you. But she collapsed before she could make it all the way inside. All I did was bring both of you in and pulled up a Sage barrier out there to keep us safe." And then he asked seriously, "What happened?"

"We were attacked by a Mist nukenin and her summons."

Naruto frowned. "Somehow I expect you to be able to deal with something like that."

Itachi felt oddly chastised. His first reaction was to apologize, but there was something he needed to know. "How did you know we required assistance and how did you locate us?"

"I have my ways." And then he sighed. "Didn't expect to have to come to help her so soon, though."

"You've been in contact ever since her disappearance from Konoha?" Itachi asked without holding back.

The look the blond have him was hard and unapologetic. "Yes. She needs all the friends she can get. Did you think I was going to leave her alone out here?"

The way he had done, Itachi added for him.

Naruto exhaled loudly. "Look. I respect you as my sempai and I don't think you're a bad guy, but you treated her really badly. In the end, that business between the two of you is already in the past, so I guess we should move on from this topic or I might do something I regret."

Having no wish to start a confrontation with Naruto, Itachi nodded in agreement. He then gave Sakura an anxious look. "She is not well."

"No kidding." A heavy sigh left Naruto. "I'd love to get her some medical treatment, and you too. But knowing her, I don't think she would appreciate it. So I guess you'll just have to watch her and make sure she doesn't get worse." Waving at a small bag nearby, he added, "There are enough basic medicines and provisions in there to last you a day or two."

"You're not staying?"

Naruto shook his head. "This is about as long as I can stay. I was in a meeting with Suna's administrative department when I felt Sakura. I told Tsunade-Baa-chan I needed to go to take a leak. Good thing I already set up seal points in this country, so it didn't take me long to get here. That was an hour ago. Baa-chan's probably ready to punch a hole in my face by now."

As amused as he was by Naruto's explanation, Itachi knew that the younger shinobi was right about their leader's likely reaction. Still, the Hokage had always given Naruto more leeway than others, so the blond might actually escape with his head intact.

"You took a risk in coming here. Thank you for your assistance," he said quietly.

"Not a problem. One last thing, though." Giving him a long look, Naruto continued lightly, "Probably best to forget you've seen me here today, don't you think?"

"Aa."

Grinning widely, Naruto brought his hands together. Borders of orange grew around his eyes, and in a flash he dissolved out from sight. Itachi stared at the empty space for a while before turning his attention back to Sakura.

Careful as to not disturb her, he reached out to stroke her clammy temple and hoped that she would get better soon.

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"_I want to annul the marriage."_

_Tsunade looked up sharply, and then her expression turned stony. "So… now it has come to this." _

_Sakura took a deep breath. "Let me explain, Shishou-"_

_Tsunade waved a dismissive hand, interrupting her. "No need. I'm not blind to what has been happening to you." She sighed heavily, her expression turning weary. "I'm sorry, Sakura. I shouldn't have allowed it to progress. You look more and more unhappy each time I see you. I was expecting this months ago." _

"_It's not your fault, Shishou," she protested. _

"_The Uchihas are more trouble than they're worth. If they weren't such a strong force…" Tsunade frowned. "This will cause some problems, but Fugaku can't object since…" She raised a brow at Sakura. "Rumor has it that Itachi has never spent a night at home, which is not surprising since he's been taking one mission after another non-stop. So I'm taking that you're annulling based on non-consummation of the marriage? Or is it infidelity?"_

_Despite the rumors, she had no proof of the latter. "Non-consummation." _

_Tsunade looked astonished. "So he really stayed out of your bed for all this time?" _

_Embarrassed heat suffused her cheeks as she nodded, and then she thought she heard Tsunade mutter something about 'wise kid'. But she must have heard wrongly. _

"_Did you speak to him about this? Ask him for his reasons?"  
><em>

"_I confronted him last night." She refused to think of how hurt she was at his dismissive attitude in the face of her accusations. "He didn't sound as if he wanted this marriage any more than I do."_

"_It's just as well," Tsunade carried on thoughtfully as she stood up and went to the cabinets against the wall. "Perhaps this will teach Fugaku not to meddle with others' lives."_

_Sakura watched as the Hokage rummaged through one of the compartments, and eventually pulled out a storage scroll. Then she returned to her desk to open it. There were list of names on the surface and Tsunade released the seal next to 'Uchiha Itachi'. A smaller, red scroll popped out. _

_Tsunade slid the scroll across the wooden surface. "This is your marriage contract. You should know what to do when you open it. We need agreement from both parties. Once signed, a jutsu will activate and seal this record back in the archive. That's all we need to dissolve the marriage." _

_Sakura took the scroll and clutched to her chest. "You're not… upset?" _

"_Honestly? I was hoping that it would sort itself out, against all odds." Tsunade shook her head, lips twisting wryly. "I can tell that you have feelings for Itachi."_

_She looked down at the papers, her eyes blurring the words there as sorrow weighed down upon her chest. "I did. Not anymore." His treatment of her had killed any feelings she had for him. _

_With a sigh, Tsunade leaned back and said thoughtfully, "There will be consequences to this. We just have to make sure that this split doesn't end in a bloodbath."_

_Guilt stabbed at her. People had been sacrificing themselves for their village for ages, and here she was, backing out of the deal and causing problems for her Shishou. It was only one year of her life so far, and she already could not take it. What kind of a shinobi was she?_

_Torn, she said in a small voice, "M-Maybe this is a mistake."_

_Tsunade raised a brow. "What is?"_

"_Dissolving the marriage." _

_Huffing impatiently, Tsunade stood up and walked to her. Placing both hands on her shoulders, the Hokage gave her a stern look. "Your sacrifice wouldn't help anything in the long run. Keep this between ourselves, but Itachi has no intention of becoming the Hokage. So this so-called link with me is completely useless to the clan." _

_Her lips parted in surprise. "B-But… Then, why did he propose?" _

_Tsunade shifted her eyes away, looking thoughtful. "He always has his reasons for doing things. I'm guessing he would do almost anything to keep his father appeased. For the moment, at least." A shrug followed before she added, "This marriage is over if you want it to be so. Granted, Fugaku will have some harsh things to say to his son, but neither of them could object if you choose to leave, especially since your husband didn't share your bed for a year." _

"_I don't know. I…" She sighed heavily, wondering if she had been too rash. Maybe she should think over the repercussions first. "Everything is so messed up. I just want an end to this. I want my life back." After a moment's hesitation, she added, "But I think Fugaku won't let this go easily. He wants the connection to you too much even without Itachi doing anything to gain the benefits." _

"_Itachi is not like Fugaku."_

_Sakura shook her head. "No, he's not." _

_But that did not mean that he was any better. Itachi was cruel, because if he was not, he would have ended this sooner. He would never have asked for her hand in marriage in the first place. But he wanted to please his father, or he would not have done this. In some ways, his deception was worse, because at least with Fugaku, things were fairly transparent. There one obvious similarity between them, though. Both proved to be ruthless and cunning enough to carry out whatever that was needed to achieve their objective. _

_A spike of determination shot through her. If they could do it, why not her? She was a kunoichi. She could be just as ruthless and cunning as they were to get what she wanted, shouldn't she? _

_She tightened her fingers around the scroll. "I'll get him to sign it. Not that he needs much persuasion." _

"_Read it carefully before you do anything. And maybe after that, you should leave on a mission to let the dust settle," Tsunade said thoughtfully. "It will do you good to be out of Konoha for a while. You've been cooped up far too long. I should be able to find an easy B-ranked mission for you." _

_That sounded good. In fact, Sakura could not think of anything more attractive at the moment. Away from Konoha meant that she did not have to face anyone. No more pity, no more snickers and mockery, and no more pretending to be happy. She could be herself again until she fixed what was left of her tattered heart and pride. _

_The problem was, the moment she returned, the unpleasantness would resume albeit in a different form. Wouldn't it be nice if she could stay away until everyone had forgotten about her? _

_But what about her friends?_

_What friends? Naruto was her only friend left, but he was more often out of the village than not, so she barely saw him these days anyway. In fact, if she was not in Konoha, she would probably see him more often. Ino? Ino had not turned up for her wedding and after that, it seemed that the blonde had purposely stayed away. The rest of the rookies? Too busy with their own lives, even though they would still spare her a casual thought or two, the way she did for them. Despite their history, it had only taken a year for her to drift apart from everyone. _

"_What do you think?" Tsunade asked. _

"_What exactly do you have in mind?" she asked absently as she turned over ideas in her head. Staying away seemed more and more attractive the longer she thought about it. _

_Tsunade frowned at the mission schedules. "Yugakure has nice hot springs. You could go there on a reconnaissance mission. We have limited intel on that area so you'll be there at least a month or two." _

_Not nearly long enough, Sakura thought wearily. She needed a stretch without a deadline looming. If she could devise a way to do it such that Tsunade was not seen to be favoring her apprentice, it would be much better. Otherwise, her shishou would have to deal with the fallout from her own stupid mistake._

_As Tsunade went on about the background of Yugakure, Sakura's mind continued to mull over the possibilities. She needed to be away for an indefinite period without raising an alarm. Tsunade could give her one mission after another, but that move was so transparent that she was sure Fugaku would raise hell over the blatant favoritism. She needed Tsunade to be not involved with whatever she was planning, which was almost impossible because she was the Hokage's apprentice. _

_Unless she was not. Sakura's breath hitched as an idea hit her._

"_Are you alright?"_

_Sakura's eyes shot up while she strived to tamp down any expression of guilt. What she was contemplating was right up there with treason. "I'm fine, Shishou. Just thinking of what I have to pack to move from his place."_

"_So what do you think? Will Yugakure do?" _

_She nodded. "Sounds good, Tsunade-shishou. Thank you. For everything."_

_Tsunade grimaced. "After everything that's happened that's the least that I can do. You can leave tomorrow on the mission. I'm changing the ranking so that the particulars remain confidential. Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?"_

"_I'll ask Naruto."_

"_If you need anything, let me know." _

"_Thank you, Shishou." Smiling at the woman who was like a surrogate mother to her, she declared softly, "I don't know what I would do without you."_

"_Don't go all sappy on me, girl," the older woman said, but the warmth in her honey-colored eyes were unmistakable. "Now go."_

_Sakura left the Hokage Tower feeling a lot calmer than when she had entered it. The separation papers were in her hands, and she was well on her way to forming a workable plan. Parts of it seemed far-fetched, but she supposed that it meant that the Uchiha would have no one to point a finger at when she disappeared. There was really no point in getting all riled up about a dead kunoichi, even one who had just divorced the Uchiha heir, right? _

_Also, since Itachi was the heir, she was certain that Fugaku would encourage Itachi to take another wife. And when that happened, she would be able to find some excuse to return from the dead. She did not want to delve too deeply into what that constricted feeling in her chest might be at the notion of Itachi marrying some other woman. If Itachi had wanted her as a wife, he would not have neglected her as he had done. There was no point in having feelings for him. _

_All she had to do now was plan her new future. _

Sakura's eyes snapped open. There was still that awful pressure in her chest, a residual from her dream of the past. Her hand moved of its own accord to rub circles on her chest as if such a move would relieve it. She shouldn't be so affected by something that had happened so long ago, but she couldn't seem to help it. It was almost like she was being haunted by it. Perhaps it was because the whole situation between her and Itachi was left so unresolved.

With a sigh, she glanced across the cave to find the man in question asleep on his bedroll. The lines upon his face were less prominent right now since he was relaxed.

But wait, where were they? And if he was asleep who was guarding the place?

Then she felt it. There was a hum of pressurized air around them, betraying the fact that there was some sort of shield in place. The shield felt reassuringly secure. Slowly, she tried to sit up to see better, only to hiss in pain and fall back down when her legs cramped up. Clearly, she'd damaged them further when she'd hauled Itachi across the forest in search of a safe place to hide. Itachi must have regained consciousness at some point to bring them here since she did not remember doing so.

A moment later, Itachi shifted and opened his eyes.

She immediately asked, "How are you feeling?" And then her eyes widened when she realized what he'd done. "Why did you remove the bandages? The poultice is there to help heal the burns."

He pulled his pant leg up to show her a flawless leg. "Thank you for healing me."

She felt herself flush in discomfort and she quickly turned away. "Don't worry about it." And then she glanced at him. "You're clean."

"I certainly hope so."

She gave him an impatient look. "I mean, the last time I saw you, you were covered in blood. Did you find a river nearby or something?" Running her hand along her sticky neck, she grimaced and muttered, "I need a wash."

"There is a very small hot spring at the back of the cave."

She brightened instantly. "Really?" Excited at the prospect of being clean, she sat up. Or tried to, and failed miserably once again.

Itachi came to her side, clearly concerned. "You're in pain."

She exhaled. "I must have overstrained my body. It's probably just very stiff. I'll be fine in an hour or so."

Without warning, he slid his arms below her body, drawing a surprised gasp from her. "What are you doing?" she choked out when she found herself being lifted up.

"I'll bring you to the spring."

She felt heat rising from her chest to her cheeks. "Put me down!" she urged, trying to push off him.

"Don't move."

She stilled and fell silent as he made his way to the back of the cave. His tone was enough to tell her that he would not be swayed. Being held by him like this, however, was wreaking havoc on her senses. Her cheek was pressed against his shoulder and her entire side was in contact with his front. It was difficult to think of a time when they had been closer.

He felt… nice.

Needing to distract herself from her wayward thoughts, she asked, "How long have we been here?"

"A little more than two days."

Her eyes widened in horror. "We'll lose them!"

Itachi gave her an uncomprehending look.

Realizing that he'd been unconscious when the miko had appeared, she explained, "That dragon kunoichi is the miko's underling. Towards the end of our fight, Kagami came and took her away."

"Do not worry. We'll leave once you're well." Itachi's steps slowed. "We're here. I'll let you down now."

There was a shallow pool of steaming water right in front of her. She felt her feet touch the ground but her rubbery muscles refused to cooperate. The next thing she knew, strong hands clamped around her upper arm and prevented her from falling face first into the water.

"Sorry," she murmured in mortification. "Just leave me here. I'll be fine."

He gave her a look which told her quite clearly that he didn't believe her. She was about to try to convince him again when he snaked an arm around her back and reached towards her neck with the other hand.

"Wha-" She broke off with a stunned exclamation when he pulled her zipper down her neck. Her hand went up to hold his in place before he could go any lower and reveal her bra. "Itachi! Stop it!"

Their eyes met and her breath caught in her throat when she realized just how close they were. The tension suddenly sizzled through the air. And he seemed to realize it too, for she could see his pupils dilate in reaction. The arm around her body flexed and she could feel the thumb of the other hand stroking the base of her exposed neck.

She swallowed hard, and it drew his gaze to her lips.

Her eyes slid shut just as his mouth slanted over hers. His lips were gently persuasive against hers, almost hesitant in fact. It was like he was trying to seduce her carefully, a notion which made her heart ache a little. She found herself responding and in turn, he deepened their kiss while he tightened his arms around her. Desire thrummed through her body, clouding her thoughts and tempting her to be reckless.

When he finally pulled away, she was left feeling oddly bereft. She opened her eyes to find him staring at her with a pensive expression. What was he thinking? Whatever it was, she was relieved that he'd stopped as he did. She clearly wasn't in her right mind because she couldn't even muster the strength to... To what? Protest? Who was she trying to fool? She knew that she had been a willing participant, but what did that mean? Did it mean that she still had feelings for him?

His voice was steady when he said, "I will only remove your outerwear."

She blinked in confusion. And when she recalled what had led to the kiss in the first place, she flushed. "I'm fine like this. Just put me in at the edge of the water."

For a moment, he looked as if he would protest and then he thought the better of it. With a curt nod, he helped her down until she was seated at the warm rock lining the edge of the pool. The second the hot water touched her numb legs, Sakura let out a long sigh. Carefully, she shuffled in until she was sitting at the bottom with the water coming up to her chest, fully-clothed.

Itachi released his hold on her then.

She cast a grateful look at him. "Thank you."

He inclined his head. "I will return with your clothes."

When he left the inner chamber, Sakura let her head fall back against the edge of the pool. Heat suffused her limbs, which were now beginning to throb as circulation returned to them. However, the physical discomfort she was experiencing was nothing compared to the emotional. She hated that she did not understand what she was feeling and how confused that made her. She hated that her mind kept asking the same question in a loop over and over.

Did she still have feelings for Itachi?

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_They have got to be joking._

Deidara wanted to slam his fist into something, preferably the miko's face when he realized where they were headed. This dark underground tunnel led to one place only and he was surprised that the bitch knew about it. Just who was she, and what was she up to? He knew that it had something to do with the stone fragment that Sasuke had pulled out of the sky in Lightning.

Was there something like that in Iwa as well? In that case, she would probably make him do the same as Sasuke, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Then again, he was not the only one who was powerless here. He smirked as he saw the vacant expression of the Mist nukenin. The kunoichi was completely under the miko's control now, and was dressed in the typical garb of an Iwa civilian like him. Like him, she was probably ranting and railing inside that body. Even though it didn't help the situation, he was glad that he was not the only one in the same position.

Before long, they reached the end of the underground path where the darkness gradually lessened. A set of stone steps was in front of them, and they all climbed up into the sunlit opening. As his body continued to follow the miko, Deidara took note of where they were. He recognized this area. It led to the market square. Despite his mind clamoring for his body to stop, it stepped forward until the market stalls came into full view.

Much to his dismay, he felt a wash of nostalgia. Walking past the evening market stalls like this with the scent of fried dough sticks lingering in the air reminded him of a time he would rather forget. Damn the bitch for subjecting him to this.

There were children huddled by the side of their parent's stall playing a game he remembered all too well. His elder sister had taught him how to play, and he had promptly beaten the older kunoichi. The very thought of his sister made him feel almost sick inside, and once again he cursed the miko. Like him, his sister was an artist. But Iwa had seen none of that. They had seen nothing but the fact that she was an exceptionally beautiful woman. She'd protested against the mission but to no avail. Everyone knew that a good shinobi had to follow orders. In the end, she'd done exactly that, but in doing so she'd all but killed herself. He'd never gotten the chance to say goodbye to her.

He felt his heart twist painfully, and the next thing he knew he was face down in the dirt.

"Get up."

Breathing hard through the thundering sound in his ears, Deidara didn't respond.

"What are you doing, Daichi? Get up!"

It dawned on him that the miko was talking to him. Wait a second. Why was he pushing himself up on his hands and knees? Why had he fallen in the first place? Had his body reacted to his own feelings? Maybe there was hope for escape after all.

When his body pushed itself up onto its feet, Deidara groaned inwardly. It seemed that for a while, his body had been his own. All it had taken was for him to dredge up his miserable past.

The market thinned down as they reached the end of the street. Clearly knowing where she was going, the miko led them to a fenced up training ground. Deidara remembered this particular one. The landscape was jagged with rock outcrops popping up everywhere, which made it a perfect place for ambush training because there were hundreds of places to hide.

Maybe he could regain control long enough to lose the miko amongst the rocks. With that thought in mind, he focused on getting his body to turn around and walk away. The sensation was not unlike walking through very dense mud, and was about just as successful. Irritation coursing through him, he decided to give it a rest for now. Besides, based on the miko's previous mode of operation, she would dump him when he'd done whatever she wanted him to do here, anyway.

His body stopped beside the miko, and she swept her arms out until an enormous shimmering dome-shaped barrier formed over them. The shimmer faded out in a few seconds, leaving the dome invisible. So this was it then, he thought grimly.

She turned to him with a sinister smile. "Now it's time for you to make yourself useful."

His arms moved of their own accord and formed seals he did not recognize. His chakra gathered and climbed at an alarming rate as he continued to form one seal after another. At some point, he felt a boost of foreign chakra which he vaguely recognized as the Mist nin's. He knew that whatever this jutsu was, it would be big. Although part of him was excited by the idea that he was about to execute something that would go out with an unforgettable bang, another part of him wondered just how much damage he would sustain in doing so. At one time, he wouldn't have given a shit about injuring himself but now it was different. Now, he had to be healthy enough to make his way back to Sakura.

Before he could form another thought, his fingers settled on the last seal and the ground around him rumbled ominously. Then there was an upward rush of grains of sand that scraped painfully against his skin as the air carrying them thundered past his ears.

Despite the strain, he kept the jutsu going and looked up at the same time as his other two accomplices did. A very familiar shape coagulated mid-air, formed from the particles of sand which were flying upwards. It grew more solid with each wave of chakra draining out of him. His body protested against the abuse, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Then everything stopped.

The silence was deafening and for a moment, Deidara felt disoriented. All he could hear was a dead hum, and all he could see was the cloudless blue sky. He was on his back and was too drained to do anything about it. How humiliating.

Then he heard it. It was a loud shriek which conveyed pure outrage. His body turned to look, only to find the miko glaring furiously at the stone fragment she was holding.

"This is not it. What is this?!" she snarled and then spun towards him. The stone fragment shattered beside his head and sharp shards pierced his cheek. "YOU! What did you do?"

What? Deidara wished he was responsible for whatever it was that had gone wrong. Hell, he wished he could laugh in her face and mock her. Whatever that had her sputtering and ranting, he was damned glad it happened.

At least, until he felt an invisible force slamming into him and choking the air out of his lungs. Dimly, he noted that it was the same sort of stuff she used to form the barrier but on a much smaller scale. Then all he could think of was the very desperate need to suck in enough air to keep himself alive.

A bored voice rang through the air. "Give it up, Miko. You lost."

Through a haze of pain clouding his eyes, Deidara managed to make out the outline of a familiar figure standing on the tip of a rock. Disbelief shot through him and he snorted inwardly. Wasn't this just the perfect end to a shitty day?

Onoki-Jijii always turned up at the worst possible time.

Just as the figure of the Tsuchikage melted into the darkness, Deidara found himself wondering how he could escape Iwa for the second time round. He had to get free. Otherwise, he was doomed.

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AN: Hope you've enjoyed the chapter. As always, reviews are much appreciated. Thanks!

:elle6778:


	16. Chapter 15

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Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: It's a little late but here's the update. Please enjoy…

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Chapter 15 **

The grey rocky mountain ranges spread over the land could only be described as forbidding. It was hardly surprising that Iwa used them as a natural fortress to deter enemies. The hidden village of Iwagakure was built within these mountains with many of the structures gracing the cliffs, connected by a series of bridges.

Itachi glanced to the side to see Sakura running forward resolutely. They had left the day after she had awoken and had been travelling ever since. After the episode at the hot water pool, something he would rather not mull over at this moment in time, she had emerged completely healed albeit a little low on chakra. She had insisted on them leaving several hours later. Despite his reservations about her ability to fight in her condition, he had assented. The urgency wasn't as acute for him though, since he knew that it was unlikely that the miko would obtain the next fragment.

As they sped towards Iwagakura's main gates, he could sense the bursts of chakra from within the compound which told him that the battle had begun. He only hoped that the Tsuchikage had undertaken the necessary preparations to intercept the miko's intrusion.

"Are we too late?" she cried out as she sped up at the sight of Iwagakure's main gates in the distance. "We are, aren't we? They're already fighting in there."

"No, we're not too late. Not this time."

She eyed him curiously. "You sound so certain. What if she gets the fragment before us?"

"She will not."

"If you say so." Giving him a questioning look, she asked, "How are we going to gain access into Iwa?"

"We're not their enemies."

"I'm a nukenin, Itachi," she pointed out irritably as she leapt over a projecting rock on the ground. "All hidden villages treat me like an enemy."

Disliking how she referred to herself even though it was nothing but the truth, he assured her, "We'll tell the Tsuchikage that you're assisting me."

"But what about Deidara? He's an Iwa missing nin. How are we going to get the Tsuchikage to let him go?" she asked anxiously.

There was really nothing he could say to that, so he did not respond.

Her tone was dry when she said, "You don't think we can save him, do you?"

He only shook his head.

She huffed, but said nothing else.

Itachi kept his expression impassive as he continued to run. It was pointless to verbalize his concern to her now, for it would not make any difference. The moment he realized that Deidara's trail led to Iwagakure, and not somewhere in the wilds of Stone Country, he knew that it would be very difficult for Sakura to save her partner. She knew as well as he did that it was unlikely Deidara would be able to walk out of this if the Tsuchikage had anything to say about it. He only hoped that she wouldn't choose to do something foolish.

"Are you sure we should head straight there?" she asked with her wary eyes on the gates looming ahead.

He had prepared for this accordingly. "They will recognize me."

"If anything goes wrong…"

"It will not."

"It must be nice to be so certain of everything," she remarked flatly.

His lips quirked in response to the irony of her comment. "At one time, I would agree with you. That is no longer the case." Curiosity colored her features, but he only shook his head at her unspoken question. "I'll explain some other time."

There was also another important topic that he needed to discuss with her, but that would have to wait. Still, he knew that he could only delay for so long. She would have to be told the truth before she returned to Konoha. He wasn't looking forward to her reaction when the time came.

Just as they approached Iwa's main gates, a familiar chakra exploded outwards and Itachi tensed. The nukenin was still alive and was fighting.

"That's Deidara!" Sakura cried out. "We need to get to him."

Itachi frowned. "Sakura…"

She gave him a desperate but angry look. "I _know_, alright! I know he's one of the most wanted nukenin here. But I need to _try_. Can you understand that?"

He looked away, unable to face what was staring right at him. Her concern for Deidara was strong but just how strong was it?

They slowed to a halt at the gates, where the Iwa guards stood blocking their way. One of them stepped forward and Sakura instantly tensed. Itachi had the impression that she was preparing herself for a quick escape. Her instinct as a missing nin was deeply ingrained, it would seem.

"Uchiha Itachi," the guard greeted gravely and then glanced sharply at Sakura. "And who is this?"

"This is my accomplice. I believe the Tsuchikage is expecting me?"

Still distrustful of Sakura's presence but clearly deciding to believe him, the guard nodded. "Go on in."

The moment the gates swung open, Sakura rushed in ahead of him. He matched her rapid pace and let his senses direct him to where the battle was raging. They came across a recently-deserted marketplace and were soon in what was clearly a training ground filled with jagged rock outcrops. Between the rocky peaks, Itachi caught glimpses of the red-clad Iwa nins darting around stealthily.

"He's there, Itachi!" she cried out as they reached the valley between a pair of rock outcrops. "I can sense him."

His arm shot out in front of her, preventing her from advancing further. "We shouldn't interfere."

"But-"

"You should understand this, Sakura. We're in Iwa's territory. Unless we're attacked, we can only observe."

Her frustration was palpable but they could not interfere unless the Tsuchikage permitted them to do so. To do otherwise would be to invite the other village's disapproval and in this time of fragile peace, Itachi knew not to do such a foolish thing. He only hoped that Sakura did as well.

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They'd scaled one of the rocky peaks and were now standing in a better position to observe what was going on. Sakura's hands clenched into tight fists while the events unfolded as she watched helplessly. Backed by a crowd of his shinobi, the diminutive Tsuchikage stood at the top of the cliff across from theirs, staring down imperiously at the furious miko. In the valley them, Deidara was sprawled on the ground, clearly unconscious. Was he alright?

"You will regret your interference, old man," Kagami threatened as a shimmering light pulsed around her.

Onoki cackled loudly. "Do you think you can best us, little girl?"

Kagami's eyes narrowed. "You're underestimating me."

The Tsuchikage leapt down from the cliff onto a rocky ledge, landing hard. "Argh! My back!"

Kagami jeered, "Such a weak old man. And you dare challenge me?"

Onoki's eyes narrowed in annoyance. Smirking, the miko gathered the light to her palm and in one swing, sent it flying. The pulse of light hit Deidara and he jerked hard. Almost instantly, his eyes shot open and he pushed himself up. The next thing Sakura saw was a blur and then the blond was standing in front of the Tsuchikage with a kunai pointed at the old man's throat. A gasp of alarm left her and she almost rushed forward when Itachi's fingers clamped around her arm.

"No," he cautioned. "Look."

Sakura glanced at where he was pointing. A dark haired Iwa kunoichi had just jumped out and forced Deidara away from Iwa's leader. The kunoichi wore an expression which contained a mix of horror and disbelief.

"Deidara-sempai!" she cried out. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Who are you calling sempai?" the blond returned disinterestedly.

The Tsuchikage pushed the kunoichi aside. "Stay out of the way, Kurotsuchi. He's not the Deidara you know."

"But…"

"He's being controlled," Onoki explained grimly. He slid a disgusted look at the miko. "By this woman."

Kurotsuchi gasped. "What? How?"

Onoki widened his stance in preparation for an attack. "Who knows?"

Smiling maliciously, Deidara leapt into the air and released a white clay bomb. Sakura sucked in a sharp breath as the bomb headed towards the Tsuchikage.

The old man called out, "Jinton: Genkai Hakuri no Jutsu!"

In between his palms, a small glowing sphere surrounded by a translucent cube formed. At the Tsuchikage's command, the dense orb flew outward and collided with the bomb, stopping it in its tracks and swallowing it within the translucent enclosure. Deidara's bomb exploded then, but the enclosure restricted the blast and prevented it from harming anyone.

Before the blond nin could execute another attack, Onoki launched off the rocky ledge. Face twisted with purpose, he came fast at Deidara with his fist enclosed in a large bulge of rock. The younger nin didn't have a chance to avoid the attack. Sakura gasped in alarm as the reinforced fist made contact with Deidara's midsection and sent him flying. He crashed into the opposite rock face just under where she stood.

Appearing to be completely unfazed by the blow despite bleeding heavily from the back of his head and hacking blood from his lips, Deidara straightened to his feet. Anxiety flooded Sakura as her medically trained eyes told her that his body shouldn't be able to cope after suffering from such an impact. He should stop or he would end up damaging himself further. But if he was being controlled by the miko, stopping was the last thing he would do.

As if sensing her regard, the blond nin glanced up. Eyes narrowing, he reached into his clay pouch and the next thing she knew, he was up in the air on his familiar clay bird. Their eyes met and Sakura felt an icy wash of dismay at the unfamiliar malevolence in those blue orbs.

"Both of you, destroy all of them! Make them pay," the miko ordered as she made a beeline for the Tsuchikage. "I'll handle the old man."

The blond nodded once.

"Stop this, Deidara!" Sakura bit out tersely. "Snap out of it!"

Ignoring her words, he hovered on his clay bird with his right hand kneading the clay in his pouch. Dread settled in the pit of her stomach when she realized that she would have to fight him.

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Itachi did not have to look at Sakura's expression to know that it would be difficult for her to go head to head with the nukenin. After all, this was the man she trusted. However, before he could move to intercept, the kunoichi with light brown hair appeared in front of him. From the blank expression in her eyes, it was clear that this kunoichi was also under the miko's control.

"You! You'll pay for what you did!" she snarled.

It took him a moment to think of what she meant. "Aa, your dragon summon."

"Because of you Ryuujin is gone and my contract is broken."

He was not aware that a summoning contract could be broken in such a manner but he supposed that it all depended on the individual pact. Still, it seemed that this kunoichi managed to retain some of her own personality, unlike Deidara. It made him wonder how the miko was controlling them.

An explosion burst out and he glanced to the side to find Sakura ducking behind an earth barrier. She met his eyes and frowned at him. The next thing he knew, she had launched herself up in the air, slinging pellets of earth at the blond nukenin. Seated on his clay bird, it was easy for Deidara to avoid the projectiles but that didn't deter her. They surged towards each other, one from the air and the other from atop the cliff but it was clear that Sakura was not exerting all her strength in her attacks.

The sudden crackle of chakra sent his senses into high alert and Itachi brought his hands together to execute a replacement jutsu as a whip of water landed where he'd been standing.

"You don't have time to look after her," Hisame snapped as she lashed out at him again. "I'm your opponent."

Without a word, he leapt out of the way and reappeared behind the kunoichi. Sensing that her weakness was close-quarter combat, he tried to corner her in this manner. She spun around and with an expression filled with equal amount of vengeance and anger, sent an explosion of water wave towards him.

He countered with a giant fireball. The attacks collided and both dissipated with a loud hiss. Steam filled the air immediately.

It was then that Sakura landed behind him, pressing her back to his. In an irritated tone, she snapped, "Look, Itachi. I appreciate the effort but just focus on your own battle, will you? I don't need you to watch out for me. This battle is mine to fight and I know what I'm doing."

And then she was gone. A wry smile lifted the corner of his lips. She was right of course. What could he possibly be thinking? She was no longer the trainee ANBU who had tagged along with his squad years ago. She was someone who had survived the harsh world of missing nins. Despite it being so obvious, it was odd how this little fact had escaped him until now.

The steam cleared just enough for him to make out the figure of his opponent. It was time to end this.

Unshakeable resolve filled him and he streaked forward. The dragon summoner brought her hands together and sent bullets of water flying towards him. Zigzagging rapidly, he avoided the projectiles and counterattacked with two full-strength water dragons. His dragons swept aside her weaker assault and before she could escape, converged and crashed into her.

Itachi watched impassively as the water covered her from head to toe. She sputtered and choked as she struggled to breathe. Without her dragon summons, she was considerably less powerful. Her summons must have been her main strength and now that the contract was broken, she was left without her main advantage.

He glanced in another direction to find Onoki staring into space. His brows furrowed when he realized that the miko was nowhere to be seen. Had she escaped?

A loud explosion shifted his attention. Large masses of broken rocks from one of the now non-existent peaks were scattered in front of a small figure. From here, he could see that her expression was grim but determined. He watched incredulously as she tossed the rocks up one by one as if they weighed nothing and then punched them into the air at the flying clay bird. Occupied by the need to avoid the rocks, Deidara could do nothing but swerve and duck without pause.

One of the rocks finally found its mark and with a loud crack, the bird's head broke off. The clay construct spiraled down through the air while Deidara backflipped off its back. As he landed on a rock outcrop, he glared murderously at Sakura.

Recalling their brief exchange earlier, Itachi smothered the urge to assist her.

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Sakura tensed in readiness. She had worked with Deidara long enough to know that he shouldn't have enough clay to make another one of those birds. Furthermore, with him on land she had a good chance of taking him down.

However, before she could do anything, she heard the Tsuchikage shout, "Jinton: Genkai Hakuri no Jutsu!"

Once again, a small sphere with a translucent enclosure appeared between the old man's hands. The enclosure grew rapidly as it sped towards its target. Deidara didn't have time to react. Before he knew it, he was trapped within the enclosure with the small sphere.

The sphere exploded.

"No!" Sakura cried out as she rushed forward.

"Stop right there, little girl!" Onoki snapped as he leapt towards the blond shinobi.

Her steps faltered at the commanding tone. Just as she made the decision to disobey, she caught sight of the figure on the ground. Even from here, she could tell that he was alive. Anguish coursed through her as she scanned Deidara's injured and unconscious body. He seemed so fragile lying there on his side with the Tsuchikage standing over him. The old man's two companions, Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi joined them soon afterward, sending her chances of dragging Deidara out of Iwagakure plummeting to zero.

A burst of chakra signaled a transportation jutsu, drawing Sakura's attention away from the crowd around her partner. When the smoke cleared, a tall slender figure appeared just behind the Iwa trio.

"Ino!" Sakura gasped in disbelief.

The blonde kunoichi snapped around and her blue eyes widened in surprise. "Sakura?" Her expressions morphed from surprise to suspicion. "You're alive."

Sakura started at the flatness of Ino's tone. And then her joy at seeing her friend turned into uneasiness. Ino had been anything but friendly the last few times they had interacted with each other. Sakura hated how her bubbly friend had turned into this emotionless, bitter kunoichi. And it was only because of those missions Ino shouldn't have accepted.

"Yamanaka."

Ino turned away from her to bow shortly at Itachi. "Uchiha Taichou," she murmured flatly. "Hokage-sama asked me to speak to you before I leave."

"You've briefed the Tsuchikage fully?" Itachi asked.

"Yes."

"And the Mizukage?"

"I've completed my mission."

"Good."

"I'm returning to the guest quarters. I have a couple of things to settle before I leave." Ino lifted a hand. "I will see you in Konoha."

"I need a private word with you before then," Itachi told her.

Ino frowned slightly, and then nodded. Without a single glance at Sakura, she walked away. She wanted to chase after her friend, but she had a feeling that it wouldn't be welcomed.

Some distance away, the Tsuchikage was complaining loudly about his back and hips. His two shinobi companions were close by, but they were paying him no attention. Akatsuchi and Kurotsuchi were arguing about something, and the latter kept glancing at the unconscious blond on the ground. Sakura could not help but wonder if this kunoichi had been close to Deidara before he left Iwa. She'd addressed him as 'sempai' earlier.

"I need to speak to the Tsuchikage."

Sakura glanced to the side to find Itachi moving away. Long ago, when she was still the Hokage's apprentice, she would not think twice about joining him. Now, the whole idea of approaching the leader of a hidden village made her nervous, so she stayed put. After all, she was only a missing nin.

But that wouldn't be for much longer, would it? Itachi had kept his word and now both Sasuke and Deidara were found. The problem was, Deidara was in Iwa's custody and she was not stupid enough to think that she could get him away safely. At least, not without help.

More importantly, this recent development meant that she only had a week of freedom left before she had to return to Konoha. What should she do?

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As he approached, Itachi watched silently as the large Iwa nin stooped down to pick up the blond nukenin and hefted the weight easily over a shoulder.

"Akatsuchi, make sure you don't drop the boy. He's stupid enough as he is," the Tsuchikage snapped.

The large shinobi grinned jovially. "Understood, Tsuchikage-sama," he said as he shifted the load on his shoulder. "I won't drop him."

"Hmph."

The dark-haired granddaughter of the old man rolled her eyes. "Serves him right if Akatsuchi drops him on his thick head. It's not like he remembers anything anyway," Kurotsuchi drawled.

"That's true." Onoki slid a knowing glance at the girl. "I wonder if it's better for you if he remembers nothing."

Scowling, Kurotsuchi crossed her arms over her chest. "It doesn't matter," she muttered darkly.

Onoki raised a brow, but said nothing back.

Itachi could not help but wonder what the relationship between Kurotsuchi and the nukenin was. Figuring that he probably wouldn't receive an answer even if he asked, he inclined his head at the unconscious Deidara and addressed the Tsuchikage. "You must be pleased to retrieve him."

Onoki snorted as he swatted at the blond head. "The brat ran away because of something stupid. Maybe the years of hardship out there had knocked some sense into him." Then his voice lowered to a mutter, "Or maybe hearing the truth would do just that."

There was fondness in the way the Tsuchikage regarded the Deidara. At some point, they must have been close. That was reasonable since Deidara was once the Tsuchikage's pupil.

"I wonder if he'll ever remember anything," Onoki muttered thoughtfully. "That damned miko tampered with his head or something."

"That appears to be the way she controls them."

Frowning slightly, the old man said, "Well, we would have to fix that."

"Aa." Then he asked, "When did you retrieve the true fragment?"

Onoki snorted. "Days ago when Yamanaka came. Even had time to set up a fake one. The system was ingenious in the way it linked all the fragments together, but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle. After all, Iwa was the one that had found the first hint of the stone tablet."

"Where is the fragment now?"

"We hid it someplace safe. That's not too difficult since it looks like any old slab of stone. Badly cracked one, at it. Hard to think that five pieces of these joined together would cause any trouble. But then again, that damned Madara was involved. So I suppose it's understandable that trouble should follow." He gave Itachi a pointed look. "Hmph! At least Konoha won't be hogging all the fragments."

"Aa. The risk is lessened by ensuring that the fragments are distributed to several parties," Itachi commented diplomatically.

Onoki's expression darkened. "That impertinent miko got hold of Kumo's share, though. What does the Raikage think about that?"

"I do not know, Tsuchikage-sama."

"Tsk. He'll throw a fit when realizes what's going on." Eyes narrowing, the old man said, "Speaking of what's going on, who's that girl standing back there?"

Itachi carefully masked his expression. "She's merely an accomplice, Tsuchikage-sama. She was a victim of the miko and because of that, she has offered to assist."

Onoki gave him a knowing look. "Just an accomplice, huh?"

Itachi held his tongue.

The old man raised a brow. "She looks familiar. I could almost say that she's related to that girl Sakura. You know, the one always tagging along with Tsunade-hime?"

"Aa. The Hokage's apprentice," Itachi agreed mildly. "There is a resemblance, I suppose. Both of them seem to be around the same age."

"The apprentice died, didn't she?" the Tsuchikage asked bluntly.

"It appears so."

Eyes not leaving him, Onoki nodded slowly. "Well, such a shame. She was a good girl. Last time we met, she helped ease my back pain. That was years ago, though. There aren't any good medics around nowadays."

Itachi knew that the Tsuchikage was not fooled, but he could not openly admit to knowing that Sakura was alive. Would the old man disclose this information to the Hokage? Did it really matter either way, since Sakura would have to return to Konoha in a week at the latest?

He glanced back to find her leaning against the outer walls of the training grounds. She was tense and wary, the way any missing nin behaved when in close proximity to any major hidden village. Could she ever return to being a loyal shinobi of Konoha after being a nukenin for so long? Could she ever fit back in with the schedules and demands of having to answer to someone else aside from herself?

This was not the time to think about it.

"I will return to Konoha now and report the progress to the Hokage," Itachi told the Tsuchikage.

The old man waved at the Iwa buildings in the distance. "You're welcomed to stay and rest before travelling back." His keen eyes darted to Sakura before he said, "Your _accomplice_ might like a rest before you drag her away."

"In that case, I will ask her."

"You do that."

And with those words, the Tsuchikage turned around and walked away, leaving Itachi to stare at his retreating back. Once the diminutive old man and his shinobi had disappeared from the training grounds, he made his way to Sakura. She pushed herself off the stone walls as he approached.

"All done?" she asked quickly.

Was she so eager to remove herself from his company? Of course she was. How had he deluded himself into thinking that she wanted his company? "You wish to leave now?" he asked quietly.

She nodded. "I have a week, right?"

"Aa." After a pause, he added, "You might be intercepted by ANBU if you approach Konoha alone. It's best that I escort you into the village."

"Oh. Alright."

"The outpost at the junction between Fire, Waterfall and Grass is abandoned. Are you familiar with the area?"

A small furrow formed between her brows. "I think I know which one it is."

"We will meet there at sunset a week from now."

"Got it." A hesitant smile crossed her lips. "I'll see you then."

Chest constricting uncomfortably, he watched as she walked away from him. Even though he had made some progress with her, it was not enough to make her stay. Her action today was crystal clear. She was not leaving because of Deidara, because the nukenin was still in Iwa.

She was leaving because she did not wish to be with him.

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Sakura had travelled nonstop for a whole day before ending up in Waterfall where she had remained for the past one day. There were only five days left of freedom for her and then she would have to face the consequences of her actions.

Expelling a heavy sigh, she laid back on the warm rock lining the pool under the waterfall. She was dressed in nothing but her shorts and bindings. The sound of water cascading was loud but it was also strangely soothing. The whole area was overhung with brilliant greenery which gave it an illusion of privacy. Although there were plenty of such places in this country, she liked this particular spot.

The idea that she would soon be in Konoha, most likely incarcerated in a depression cell, made her feel anxious and edgy. It was not as if she did not know what was coming, but she had not expected to feel this way. She thought there would be a greater level of acceptance. Instead, every fiber of her being revolted against the impending loss of her freedom.

Still, the thought of seeing her Shishou again made her smile wistfully. Tsunade probably wished her dead after what she'd done but that did not make her love her surrogate mother any less. The old lady would also probably be hounded by Naruto every day until she agreed to release her. But Sakura knew that Tsunade's hands would be tied. She was a missing nin after all and a Hokage could not be seen to display such blatant favoritism. Oddly enough, that was one of the things which had led to her decision to leave Konoha the way she'd done.

Sakura sighed and opened her eyes. Shaking her head, she dunked herself in the hot pool of water in an attempt to wash away the disheartening thoughts of her past.

What she should be thinking of now was a way to save Deidara. She knew that she couldn't do it alone so she needed help. It would have to be shinobi with considerable skills, though. She had some contact in the underground rogue nin world but was anyone stupid enough to join her in storming Iwagakure? It was highly doubtful but she had to try. The other option was Naruto but did she really want to drag Konoha's future Hokage into this mess? It would make relations with Iwa difficult for Naruto in the long run, so that was probably a bad idea.

She frowned when she thought of Deidara's likely reaction. In the state he was in, would he even want to be saved? The old Deidara might balk at the whole idea of being in Iwa, but what about this amnesiac one? Would he trust her enough to follow her out when she tried to rescue him or would he fight her the way he'd done at the Iwa training grounds few days ago? If he rejected her then, she would have taken a risk for no reason.

"Oi! You're wide open!"

Gasping, she shot up to her feet at the sound of the familiar voice, sending droplets of water flying from her body. In the next second, a cloaked form flew down from the high ground where the water was falling from. Silhouetted against the sunlight, his features were indistinct but Sakura recognized him straight away.

"Deidara," she breathed out incredulously just as he landed before her.

The sunlight hit him and her chest constricted at the sight which greeted her. He was covered with bandages and there were scrapes and bruises all over his exposed skin.

Grinning widely, he drawled, "This is a nice welcome. So I guess you missed me, hm?"

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review!

:elle6778:


	17. Chapter 16

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A/N: Apologies for my long absence. I'm back now! Please enjoy the update.

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><p><strong>The Truth behind the Mask <strong>**by elle6778 – Chapter 16 **

Sakura was still staring at him with a look of utter confusion. It made her look so cute, not that he would ever tell her that out loud. He could not describe how glad he was to see her. It seemed like forever since they'd last stood together like this even though it had only been a few weeks.

"Are you inviting flies into your mouth or what?" he teased.

Her mouth snapped shut and her eyes narrowed. Then planting her fists on her hips, she exclaimed accusingly, "You remember me!"

"Of course, yeah. What do you think?" he replied with a smirk. "I don't have that many partners in my lifetime, especially one with side benefits."

A vein throbbed at her temple and she cracked her knuckles. "Keep on talking like that and I'll show you some other side benefits. Now tell me what happened."

Grinning unrepentantly, he retorted, "You know I like it rough too, yeah."

She scowled darkly. "Can you be serious just for a minute? The last time I saw you, you were trying to kill me! So obviously you didn't remember me. We were all under the impression that Kagami was controlling you."

At the unpleasant reminder, rage instantly bubbled within him and his humor fled. "That bitch! She blocked my consciousness or something, yeah. I know what was happening but I couldn't do anything about what I was seeing. It's like she was operating my body while I watch. I'm going to blast her head into dust when I find her!"

Sakura blinked. "You knew what was happening all that time? You were… conscious?"

He ran a hand through his hair, hating the memory of feeling so helpless. "Yeah." Another unpleasant memory hit him then. "And I also saw you with that Konoha ANBU. What was all that about? The last I checked, he was hunting you down to drag you back to Konoha. When did you become best buddies, hm?"

Something in her eyes flickered. "We're hardly best buddies. It's just… Let's say we came to an agreement."

He could not help but think that something was off. "What sort of an agreement?"

"An agreement to help each other out," she returned impatiently. "Does it really matter now? He's not here, is he?"

"No. I guess not."

He wanted to press the issue but from the mutinous look on her face, it was unlikely that he would get very far. That ANBU was clearly a sore topic for her. Hell, it wasn't as if he wanted to talk about that bastard anyway. Still, something told him that there was a bigger story between the two of them.

"Deidara, how did you regain control? And for that matter, how did you escape Iwa?" she asked quickly, glancing around them worriedly. "Last I saw, you were slung over this big guy's shoulder."

"That must be Akatsuchi, yeah."

She gave him an odd look. "I guess you knew them before you left Iwa. That dark haired kunoichi addressed you as sempai."

"Aa. They used to tag along when I train. Kurotsuchi is my sensei's granddaughter," he admitted uncomfortably as images of those days came to mind. "That was a long time ago, yeah. It's a little different now."

"So?" she prompted impatiently. "What happened? Tell me."

He shrugged. "Some blonde Konoha kunoichi got into my head and helped me regain control. It was weird, almost like she was walking all over inside my mind and I couldn't do a thing to kick her out."

Sakura's eyes widened. "Blonde?"

"What?" he asked cautiously.

"Is her name Yamanaka Ino?"

"Something like that. I wasn't paying attention with everything else that was going on. I remember thinking that she was a little strange. Hot, but there's something wrong about her. You know her?"

She took on a faraway look. "We used to be very good friends, but we… drifted apart, I guess."

"Good friends? You've got to be joking," he said disbelievingly. "She's weird."

Sakura rolled her eyes, clearly exasperated. "And you're not weird?" She exhaled slowly. "Anyway, Ino wasn't always like that. Believe it or not, she used to be a great girl to hang around. But I guess things… happened to her. Eventually we sort of lost touch with each other."

He rolled his eyes dismissively. "But what does that matter? You have me now, yeah. So that should be enough."

Something clouded her expression then and she looked away, sparking his curiosity. What was she not telling him? A shiver of apprehension ran up his spine. What had happened while they were apart?

"Hey, what's wrong now?" he asked seriously.

She shook her head and then looked up at him. "You _still_ haven't told me how you got out of Iwa."

He knew a diversion when he heard one. She didn't want to answer his question, but there was no need to be so obvious, yeah. Tsk, he supposed he could humor her for now. He would get the answer from her later.

"So?" she prompted, crossing her arms over her chest. "How did you get out?"

Payback time. Besides, it was a question he did not want to answer just yet. "Long story."

"And since when that stops you from speaking?" she shot back, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "What are you keeping from me?"

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. "I can't deal with telling you that bit yet, yeah," he returned irritably. "And I can't be bothered to make up a lie, so you just have to wait until I'm ready to spill, alright?"

She stared at him for a long time. And then with a huff, she said, "At least tell me if we need to lay low."

"Don't bother."

"So Iwa is not coming after you."

"Nope."

"The Tsuchikage let you go just like that?" she asked disbelievingly.

He scowled at her obvious tactic. "I said I'll tell you later, yeah. Which part of that don't you understand?"

Reaching out, he yanked her towards him. Her eyes widened as she slammed into him. Without pause, he linked his arms around her and held her gaze. Holding her always felt so right. This time it felt even better. They might have a point about absence making the heart grow fonder. If only they could be like this forever, just them and no one else. And then he promptly snorted inwardly at the direction of his thoughts. She would laugh her ass off if she knew what he was thinking right now. But somehow, he couldn't be bothered to stop the words from leaving his lips.

"This makes me sound like a fool but I missed you, yeah," he told her quietly. "Really, really missed you."

Her bottom lip trembled slightly. "Me too."

He narrowed his eyes in warning. "Don't you dare start with the waterworks."

She buried her face in his chest and her body shook, sending alarm racing through him. She mumbled something but it was muffled so he couldn't make sense of it. Somewhat at a loss, he resorted to running a hand up and down her back.

"Hey, get a grip, will you?" he told her gruffly. "I didn't tell you I missed you so that you can cry all over me. All those tears on me… So disgusting."

She lifted her head then and stared at him with watery eyes. Her lips were stretched into a wide grin. "You idiot! Who said I was crying?"

Feeling like an idiot, he scowled at her. Laughing at him, was she? Offended and embarrassed, he tried to shove her away only to have her arms tighten around him.

"Let go of me, yeah," he snapped irritably. "I didn't confess so that you can mock me."

"It's my turn then."

"Eh?"

"To confess." Her grin softened and the expression on her face made his heart race. "Deidara, you're very special to me. Don't ever forget that."

Much to his horror, he felt his face redden. "Well, that's even worse than what I said. Don't you dare ever say it again!"

Her cheeks were flushed but that did not stop her from swatting the side of his head. "Good thing I'm not planning to say something like that again. It's a one off thing."

He caught her hand before her palm made contact with his head again. Using it to pull her close, he lowered his head to nuzzle her jawline and murmured against her skin, "No more talking for now, yeah. We can do that later."

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Itachi stood patiently as he waited for the Hokage to digest what he had just told her. His verbal report had covered most of the events related to the stone tablet fragments but he had left out anything associated with Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke.

Before leaving Iwa, he had caught up with Yamanaka and had sworn her to silence. The kunoichi seemed suspicious but had fortunately agreed before he had to resort to using his Sharingan on her. Once that task had been completed, he had travelled to the Uchiha hideout where Sasuke was detained and spent the day interrogating his little brother. It had been pointless, for speaking to Sasuke was akin to speaking to a stranger. Although the miko was no longer near him, it was clear that whatever she had done to Sasuke remained. Perhaps the only option would be to return him to Konoha and appeal for Tsunade's help. It would be best to do this in tandem with returning Sakura to the village.

The Godaime's voice interrupted his thoughts. "You did well, Uchiha."

"Not all the fragments are accounted for yet, Hokage-sama," he told her quietly. "There should be one in Mist and a final one in this country."

"Yes. But at least she won't be able to get her hands on all of them. The message you sent earlier was useful. The Mizukage and her team are searching for the Water fragment as we speak. As for the one in Fire, I'm deploying your ANBU team and Aoba's to locate it."

His appointment with Sakura being foremost in his mind, he asked, "When?"

The Hokage stood up and walked to the window. Staring out of the glass, she muttered, "Who knows when it would turn up. Based on your observations, the Fire fragment shouldn't appear until after the Water one has been retrieved."

"Aa." After a moment of consideration, he added, "A week at the earliest, perhaps."

Tsunade turned towards him. "It has been a couple of days since the Earth fragment was found. If the Mizukage find hers early, then ours could appear in less than a week. Make sure you're ready to leave at a short notice."

"Understood."

Although his composure remained unfazed, inwardly Itachi was concerned. His priority was clearly the mission but he had a binding contract with Sakura. It was very likely that both would clash unless he did something about it. He could always terminate the contract with her provided she consented. And he doubted that she would disagree seeing that it would grant her further freedom. The problem was, the contract also dictated that he was not to track her down before the agreed time. Without doing so, he could not obtain her agreement to terminate the contract.

"By the way, Yamanaka Ino also reported back."

Itachi tensed inwardly. Had Yamanaka broken her words to him?

"She mentioned that the miko also took control of one of Onoki's nins."

He relaxed. It seemed that Yamanaka might not have mentioned Sakura. "Aa."

"Keep that in mind just in case any of your team or Aoba's behaves strangely. We don't want them falling prey to the miko's technique and start attacking each other." Tsunade tapped her fingers on her desk. "It's a good thing it can be undone."

Itachi hid his surprise just in time. This wasn't something he had expected to hear. "How?"

Irritably, the Hokage sighed. "The Tsuchikage asked Yamanaka to try to help. That crafty old man probably knew that anything mind-related is well within her capabilities. To cut a long story short, her success with the Iwa nin means that she would be deployed with Aoba's team for the duration of this new mission."

He could only stare at the Hokage while his mind whirred with the implications. If Yamanaka had managed to heal the Iwa nukenin, then it was likely that she could do the same for Sasuke. However, how was he to persuade her to assist in such a matter?

"Well, if there's nothing else, you can leave. Rest while you can but stay within the village."

Itachi kept his expression bland. "Very well, Hokage-sama."

With that, he left the room. As he walked out of the building, he thought over her words. Her decree that he was to remain in the village posed a problem as he needed to find Sakura to release her from the contract, and perhaps it was also a good time to bring up the topic of yet another unresolved issue between them. As much as it pained him, perhaps it was time for him to let go, as it was clear that his persuasions were completely ineffective on her. Whatever interest she had for him was no longer there.

Before that however, he needed to locate a certain kunoichi.

It did not take him long to find the Yamanaka kunoichi in one of the training grounds. She halted her exercises but said nothing as he approached her. It was only when he was standing in front of her that she spoke.

"Uchiha-Taichou. You're looking for me?"

"Aa."

"A mission?" she prompted.

"Not quite."

She stared at him for a few seconds before she asked, "What is it?"

"I understand that you used your kekkei genkai on the Iwa nukenin."

Looking disinterested, she responded, "The Tsuchikage asked me. Can't really say no, can I?"

"So it resulted in the successful return of his memories?"

"Well, it seemed that way," she replied flatly. "But he didn't lose his memories in the first place."

Interesting. "His memories are intact?"

"The link between his conscious mind and his body has been tampered with. I only restored it to its previous state."

"How did he behave when he resurfaced?"

"Why are you so interested in the missing nin?" she asked mildly. "Do you think he presents a danger to Konoha?"

"I doubt he presents a danger to anyone at the moment. He must be facing punishment for his crimes as a missing nin as we speak. It is unlikely that the Tsuchikage would allow him to set foot outside Iwa's cells so soon."

"Wrong."

Surprised, he eyed her consideringly. "Explain yourself."

She shrugged. "I left a day after you. That very same day, the nukenin walked out of Iwa's gates not far behind me. There were no guards around him. It sure didn't look as if he was facing any punishment."

Itachi stilled. Deidara was free? From Yamanaka's description, it did not sound as if he had escaped. Instead, he had been released. But why had the Tsuchikage allowed this? And now that the nukenin was free, would he return to Sakura? The urge to find them was strong but he knew that he had another issue to resolve.

Needing to hear the confirmation, he pressed, "He was _allowed_ to leave?"

"Yes. So, why do you want to know?" the blonde kunoichi asked.

"It relates to another matter of interest to me. Can I trust you to keep a secret, Yamanaka Ino?"

She gave him a thoughtful look. "Is it something that might endanger Konoha?"

"Ultimately no."

"What do I get from it?"

Itachi sighed inwardly. Of course it would not be so simple. Nothing came for free, after all. In the past, when she was still a giggly teenager, he would have known what to offer her. But this kunoichi before him was harder and more jaded.

Or was she?

"An opportunity to meet my little brother."

Those blue eyes widened in surprise, the first sign of true animation he had seen from her in recent years. Perhaps this little enticement would suffice after all.

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Itachi sat on the wooden platform outside the small house, listening to the rhythmic sound of the bamboo hitting the rock at the edge of the shallow pool in the courtyard. The entire compound was an Uchiha hideout, a private property at the edge of Fire Country. He had reset the security barrier such that no one could get in or out without him. In the room behind him, Sasuke remained asleep. His little brother had not regained consciousness ever since Yamanaka had completed her technique on him yesterday, but his sleep was restless. Sasuke had been tossing and groaning all this time.

Just as he wondered if he should seek medical assistance, a sharp inhalation of breath made him turn around.

Sasuke's eyes were open and there was a stunned expression on his face. Relief mingled with concern coursed through Itachi as he stood up slowly and then walked inside. His brother's eyes did not leave him as he sat down.

"Sasuke," he greeted. "How are you feeling?"

Sasuke blinked once and then frowned slightly. "Nii-san." He glanced around. "Is this real?"

Itachi felt his chest twist. "Yes, it is," he assured. "You have been released from the miko's spell."

"Ino." After a thoughtful pause, he added, "I remember seeing her but I wasn't sure what was real."

"What else do you remember?"

Sasuke's features twisted with frustration. "I don't know."

Alarmed by his brother's response, Itachi prompted, "Do you recall leaving Konoha on a mission?"

"The mission. Yes..." His eyes narrowed slightly. "I was traveling back to Konoha when I was... Wait! I remember now." Seething, he continued, "The miko pretended to be in trouble and I helped her. I don't know how but she made me obey her will."

"So you knew nothing of her before then?"

Sasuke gave him a disgusted look. "No."

Deciding that his little brother's reaction was real, Itachi asked the question which had been on his mind. "Do you recall assisting her in retrieving the stone tablet?"

Eyes flashing, Sasuke shot to his feet and snapped, "I didn't do it willingly! Are you accusing me of being her accomplice?"

"Calm down, Sasuke," Itachi instructed in a hard tone. "You have to admit that the circumstances don't put you in a good light."

"What do you mean?"

"Am I right in saying that you knew about the stone tablet long before you left for the mission?"

Something flickered in Sasuke's eyes. "So what if I knew about it?"

"And you've been asked by the head of the Uchiha clan to locate it, isn't that true?"

Sasuke clenched his fists. "Nii-san, why don't you come right out and accuse me of treason to Konoha?"

"Are you denying the accusations?"

"I didn't commit treason," Sasuke retorted harshly. "Chichi-ue might have asked me to, but I didn't do it. I can't believe you're actually pointing a finger at me."

The heavy load which had been weighing Itachi all these years dissipated instantly. "I needed to hear your denial, Sasuke. That's all."

Sasuke frowned at him, clearly confused. "Look, if I obeyed Chichi-ue's orders, the entire clan would be in trouble. I was just pretending to go along with it so that he doesn't get someone else stupid enough to do it. Not that it matters right now." He glanced away with a frustrated huff. "If I remember correctly, the miko got a piece of it."

"You retain the memories of the time you were under her control."

Grimacing, Sasuke explained, "Probably not everything. I have no control over myself. At the beginning I could see and hear clearly but things seemed less clear after a while. I remember following her in a search for a long time, and then eventually we found the tablet in Lightning. But by then the details were blurred. It was almost as if I couldn't tell what's real and what's not." Brows furrowed, he asked, "How long has it been?"

Itachi looked him in the eye. "Almost four years."

Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut, and when he opened them, the dark orbs were alight with his tomoes swirling murderously. "That bitch took four years of my life. I'll kill her."

"You'll have to return to Konoha first."

Sasuke tensed. "What will happen to me then?"

"I expect you'll be subjected to interrogation and then monitored before you're set free. It is a standard procedure for shinobi returning after a prolonged unsanctioned absence."

Shoulders slumped in resignation, Sasuke said, "I guess I don't have any other choice, do I?"

"Not if you wish to return to Konoha. Your alternative would be to live the life of a nukenin."

Eyes taking on a faraway look, Sasuke asked, "How are my teammates doing?"

"They are well. Do you recall meeting Sakura?" Itachi asked quietly.

A few seconds passed before Sasuke nodded jerkily. "Maybe. I can't be sure. There was a battle, I think."

Realizing that Sasuke was feeling remorseful, Itachi told him gently, "She would understand that you were under the miko's influence."

"I only remember this sad look on her face. Nothing else." And then he glanced over. "How is she? And Naruto? What has that idiot been up to?"

"Your blond teammate is still alive," Itachi remarked wryly. "He would be a Hokage before you know it."

Sasuke huffed, "As if! And Sakura?" He frowned. "I was probably just imagining things but I thought she wasn't wearing her hitai-ate. And her hair was black. So maybe it's not real."

Itachi debated if he should answer truthfully, for he knew that this topic would escalate exponentially once broached. "Sakura is fine."

Sasuke eyed him suspiciously. "What are you hiding?"

Realizing that it was probably pointless to keep this from his little brother, Itachi sighed. "Sakura left Konoha."

Tensing, the younger Uchiha bit out slowly, "Left? What exactly do you mean?"

"She has been a missing nin for the past two years."

Sasuke's eyes widened in disbelief. "Sakura is a nukenin? How did this happen?"

Itachi looked away. This conversation could not be avoided. "I understand that she wished to escape her marriage."

There was a long stretch of silence. When Sasuke finally spoke, his voice was icy. "Who did she marry?"

"Me."

When the blow came, Itachi did nothing to avoid it. Sasuke's fist hit his jaw and sent him crashing against the nearest shoji. The flimsy screen tore at the impact and Itachi thought idly that it would need to be repaired before his parents decided to pay a visit to this compound.

Rubbing his face, Itachi picked himself up to face his brother. "Calm down, Sasuke."

Sasuke snarled, "You married Sakura? Why? Was it because of Chichi-ue? I overheard him talking about it to Okaa-san but I didn't think that you'd actually agree to do something like that!"

"I had mistakenly assumed that she would refuse."

"You _what_?" Sasuke exclaimed incredulously. After a tension-filled pause, he hissed, "Wait, I think I see where this is going. You married her, and then treated her badly so that she has a valid reason to leave you. Isn't that right?" +

"Yes."

"You're unbelievable, you know that?!" Angrily, Sasuke stalked outside to stand on the wooden platform. "How could you make her leave Konoha? And leave her friends?"

Guilt stabbed through him. "She would return soon."

Sasuke snorted. "You sound so sure."

"She agreed to return, but not so soon."

He did not need the reminder that he would have to dissolve a certain contract before his mission commenced. Now that he knew that Deidara was free, it gave him a way to achieve his goal. When he left this place, he would create a bunshin to remain in Konoha in his place while he pursued a certain blond nukenin.

"Where is she now? I want to see her."

"Not now," Itachi told him.

"Then when?" Sasuke demanded irritably.

He stepped outside onto the platform facing the courtyard to stand beside his brother. "I will bring her here and then escort both of you back to Konoha at the same time," Itachi said. "You will see her in a few weeks."

Sasuke tensed. "What will happen to her?"

"The same as you, I expect."

A pair of dark eyes bored into him. "This is all your fault. And you'd better fix it."

Another jolt of guilt lanced through Itachi. Sasuke was not wrong in his accusation. If only he hadn't misjudged the situation so badly, Sakura would still be in Konoha. As he stared at the pool of water in the courtyard, the past returned to him.

_He stood by the kitchen table, his eyes fixed upon the neatly scroll set in the middle of it. The afternoon sun shone through the window and highlighted the thick parchment. He had been expecting this, but his chest still gave an odd lurch when he opened it and saw the heading. At the bottom, a signature was already there. _

_He should really sign his name beside Sakura's signature. _

_It had always been his belief that Sakura had been backed into marrying him, that she would not have even contemplated the notion if not for the benefits such a union would bring Konoha. Why else would Sakura marry the elder brother of the man she loved, but thought to be dead? He had deliberately stayed away from her because he thought that once Sasuke returned, she could annul this farce of a marriage and return to the man she loved. Sasuke was alive out there. It was only a matter of finding him. However, his search so far had yielded nothing. _

_Even now he should be concentrating on the search. Instead he had spent the whole of yesterday and this morning in the forest, seated on the bank of Nakano River as he calmly thought over his confrontation with Sakura. Following her outburst he was beginning to wonder if he should attempt to make the marriage work. Whatever feelings she might have for Sasuke, Itachi could tell from the way she had acted that night that she was not completely indifferent to him. In fact, in her anger she had even confessed her attraction to him. _

_And all this time, he had thought that she was only fulfilling her duty, that she was still pining for Sasuke. That was clearly not the case. She had been hurt by his treatment, and to hurt, her emotions must be involved. _

_How could he be so foolish? _

_He did not know how long he had stood there in the kitchen, silent and unmoving, but the next time he glanced out of the window, it was already dark. _

_His fists tightened, crumpling the scroll in his hands. _

_Mind made up, he pushed the crumpled scroll into his pocket and left to find Sakura. He had not seen her since she had stormed out almost three days ago, but she was likely to be at Naruto's place. He was her closest friend after all. Naruto's absence from Konoha would not stop her from staying at his place. _

_Not long afterwards, he arrived at Naruto's flat. He recalled the conversation he'd had with Sakura, long before this entire marriage issue muddied their relationship. Sakura had told him that the blond jinchuuriki had insisted on staying in a small apartment, stating that it was enough for him, even though the villagers wanted to build him a mansion to thank him for saving them from Akatsuki. _

_Nearing the apartment, he expanded his senses. There was no one inside, but Itachi managed to gain entry via one of the windows. Pausing to check for traps and surmising rather incredulously that there were none, he then went over the apartment. There was one bedroom, a bathroom and an open plan sitting area plus kitchen. It did not take him long to find Sakura's belongings stacked on a chair in Naruto's bedroom. _

_He frowned when he noticed that although her clothes were there, none of her weapons or her medic pouch was there. The medic pouch was easy to explain, as she usually carried it with her despite the fact that she was no longer on the active roster. The weapons however were harder to explain. He knew that she had not left them in the house they shared because all her personal effects had been removed. The pair of kodachi Sasuke had given her for her seventeenth birthday was also missing. _

_Indeed, all the signs pointed to the fact that she had left on a mission._

_He felt a chill wash over him. Needing to confirm his suspicions, he made his way to the Hokage Towers. There, he gained entry to the secured administration office and immediately went to the boards. It did not take him long to find the information he was looking for. _

_Haruno Sakura was out of Konoha, on a solo A-ranked mission._

_Itachi sucked in a sharp breath. She had left last night, which was the day after their confrontation. He did not understand how this could have been sanctioned. Tsunade could not have possibly sent her on such a high ranking mission when Sakura had been absent from active duty for the past eighteen months. The risk was too high. _

_Perhaps Sakura had requested it. _

_His head dipped as he considered the situation. The crumpled scroll was still in his pocket. There was nothing left for him to consider. His plan had unfolded as he had wished and now, he would see it to the end by placing his signature and blood where it was needed._

000

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Clad only in her underclothes, Sakura rested languidly against the rock lining the edge of the hot springs. It was the perfect night for a soak. The past two days spent with Deidara had been relaxed. Both of them seemed to have come to an unspoken agreement that they would take things easy. If only she could stay like this forever, she would die happy.

Unfortunately, this would not last. In about three days, Itachi would come for her and she would have to return to Konoha. How was she to explain this to Deidara? How was she to explain that their time together was so limited? What about him? What would he do? She suspected that he would fight Itachi to prevent her from leaving, but ultimately, she would have to go.

A loud sigh from across the hot springs reached her. Cracking her eyes open, Sakura glanced at her partner who was submerged in the water up to his waist. Illuminated only by the full moon overhead, she could tell that he was still a little bruised but he was fine otherwise. Someone had healed him and she could only conclude that it was the Iwa medics. It was not as if he was willing to part with any information on that topic.

Thinking about Iwa hurt her head. On the surface, it looked as if they had released Deidara but that didn't make sense since they had been hunting him for so long. Why release someone once they'd captured him? And why heal him to his full health right after capturing him? That was not how one treated one's nukenin. She was certain that she would be suffering a worse fate once she set foot in Konoha.

"This is the life, yeah!" Deidara exclaimed as he stretched his arms over his head.

He looked so peaceful there leaning against the rock with his head back against the edge of the natural hot spring. It was almost a shame to leave him in peace. Grinning, she splashed a handful of hot water at him.

"Hey!" he protested. "You're breaking the mood. And all that splashing is just childish."

She did not know why but she sure felt childish at the moment. Unrepentantly, she scooped up another palm of water and flung it his way. It connected with his face and he sputtered indignantly. Dragging a hand down his face, he glared at her and began to move swiftly through the water towards her.

Letting out a choked laugh, she scrambled back. The slippery rock under her feet made any abrupt movement precarious so she channeled chakra to stabilize her foothold. Deidara had obviously done the same, considering the speed at which he was coming upon her. Refusing to allow him the upper hand, she shot him a challenging look and darted away.

"Oh, this is how you want to play it, huh?" he yelled gleefully behind her.

"As if you can catch me! Your chakra control is nowhere as good as mine," she taunted and then stabbed a finger at the cluster of rock near where they had left their belongings and clothes. "I bet I'll reach that rock before you."

"You dare issue me a challenge like that, hm? Now you'll just have to watch me win, and suffer the consequences!" he shot back amidst the sound of vigorous splashing.

Feeling lightheaded with adrenaline and heat, she surged forward and sent large ripples of water crashing against the edge of the hot spring. He was catching up with her fast as she was finding it difficult to stop giggling like an idiot. Her target was just twenty feet away from her target when she felt herself being yanked backwards and her head unceremoniously dunked in the water.

_Damn it!_

Sputtering as she surfaced, she wasted no time in pursuing the blond just ahead of her. He was laughing uproariously, clearly expecting to win. Over her dead body! Channeling more chakra to her feet, she sent herself flying out of the water.

A second later, she crashed into his back and forced him down with her weight and her considerable chakra. He stayed underwater for a few seconds before he managed to push her off.

"Oi!" he shouted as he struggled to right himself. Swiping water out of his face, he then narrowed his eyes at her. "That's cheating. You'll pay for that, yeah!"

She laughed at his bedraggled appearance. The next thing she knew, she was slung over his shoulder. Still laughing, she punched his back lightly.

"Hey, let me down!" she cried amidst her chuckles. "Fine, fine. You win."

He huffed and then lowered her down. Her laughter died as her body reacted to the sensation of wet skin sliding against wet skin. There was a flare of something else inside her. When her feet touched the ground, their gazes connected and she could see an answering heat in his blue eyes.

"Deidara," she whispered huskily.

"I won, yeah." His intent was clearly written all over his face as he dipped closer. "So I'm claiming my prize. Right now."

His reward, huh? She could only smile softly as he began to nibble down her jaw teasingly. Her fingers slid into his hair and gently tugged it the way she knew he liked. He groaned his appreciation before he moved to lap at her ear.

"Hey," he murmured. "If this is all you want, then you could have just asked, you know."

She let out a soft laugh as she tugged hard at a lock of hair. "Don't flatter yourself."

"Hm."

Their kiss deepened and their movements grew more urgent. She felt warm and tingly all over as he ran a hand down her back to cup her rear, pulling her up against him, while his other hand snaked up her front. Lips locked with his, she moaned as she circled her arms around his wet body. This was not the first time they were in this situation but somehow, they never actually completed the act. Perhaps this time, they would. Perhaps this time, they would go all the way.

An image of the kiss she'd shared with Itachi flashed across her mind and she immediately tensed.

Sensing the change, Deidara pulled back to give her a heavily-lidded searching look. "What's wrong?"

What was she doing? She shook her head and pulled him back down to her. Deidara buried his fingers in her hair and lowered his lips against her neck, causing her to squeeze her eyes shut in pleasure.

Why was she thinking of Itachi at a time like this? And why did she feel a stab of shame, almost as if she was doing something wrong? She had every right to enjoy her time with Deidara. And since this was probably their last chance to be intimate, she was not about to back away.

000

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review!

:elle6778:


	18. Chapter 17

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

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><p><span><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 17<strong>

Itachi couldn't recall ever feeling so angry in his life. Now he understood what 'seeing red' meant. For a minute, his entire mind was clouded over with an all-consuming rage that made rational thinking an impossibility. He had not meant to accuse her aloud of adultery despite the likelihood of it. Considering the closeness she and Deidara shared, this couldn't be the first time they were intimate. The problem was that the whole notion was just unacceptable to him even though rationally he knew that he should have expected this. After all, she was acting on the impression that she was no longer married. She had to be, for she was currently regarding him with a completely baffled expression while the blond nin stared at him with an equally stunned look.

"Married?" Deidara choked out.

Itachi merely nodded, ignoring the strange pressure which was building at the base of his neck. The stress of the situation must be getting to him.

Deidara swung towards Sakura, who appeared to be too shocked to move. "You're married to this bastard?" the nukenin sputtered in disbelief. "Sakura!"

When she continued to stare at him wordlessly, Itachi prompted, "Sakura?"

She blinked once and then color flooded her cheeks. Turning towards her partner, she denied vehemently, "I'm not! We are divorced!" Turning back to give him a hard look, she snapped furiously, "What is the meaning of this? We agreed that I have a week."

"A week? What the hell…" Deidara muttered as he closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Deidara, can you please shut up so that I can make some sense of what's happening? No more comments!" she snapped. "I'll explain everything later, alright?"

A grunt of consent left the nukenin as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Turning back to him, Sakura demanded, "Why are you lying about this?"

Reaching up to press his palm against the ache which seemed to have spread from his neck to the back of his head, Itachi sighed, "It's not a lie."

She planted her hands on her hips. "Itachi-"

"I came to find you to-"

Just then, what was previously a dull ache suddenly turned into an acute pain bolting through his head. With a gasp, Itachi fell to his knees as he clutched his head. The pain was excruciating.

The contract! The contract had interpreted his actions as breaking the agreement with Sakura, despite the care he had taken earlier. His strategy had involved tracking down Deidara without a single thought towards Sakura, and then quickly dissolving the agreement once he found them. However, his control had slipped badly when he saw Sakura with the nukenin.

He gasped as another shot of pain lanced through him. Helpless to resist, he doubled up and fell to the ground as he was battered by the repercussion of his actions. He could sense Sakura and Deidara crowding around him, both confused by the situation. Explanations would have to wait until the pain subsided, if it ever did.

"Itachi!" Sakura cried.

"What the hell is going on, yeah? He looks like he's in pain," Deidara remarked in a curious tone.

There was a pause before Sakura hissed, "The agreement! That idiot!"

"Huh?"

"He broke our blood contract and he's paying for it now." Her voice came closer, "Listen, Itachi. Don't resist, alright?"

Through the haze of pain, Itachi felt her take his hand and then cold metal sliced the skin of his palm. Warm, sticky wetness seeped between them as she clutched his hand tightly to mingle their blood.

Her words were hurried. "Uchiha Itachi, I release you from our recent agreement. This blood contract will be dissolved once you consent. Do you accept?"

He gritted his teeth and looked up. The moment their eyes locked, he choked out, "H-Haruno Sakura, I accept."

Almost immediately, the pain eased and relief was granted. His breath was unsteady as he pushed himself into a sitting position and looked at the other two nins. Sakura was wearing a concerned expression while the nukenin was frowning deeply at him.

"All this was because you entered some binding blood contract?" Deidara muttered as he shook his head. "That was just stupid, yeah."

Itachi gritted his teeth. What was the point of defending his decision now?

Crouched before him, Sakura asked, "Now, can you explain what the hell is going on? Why are you here when you know that this would happen? You could've just waited a few more days until the week was up."

Instead of answering, he darted a pointed look at the nukenin. In return, Deidara stared mulishly at him, wordlessly telling him that he was not going anywhere. Resisting the urge to physically remove the other man from the scene, Itachi returned his attention to Sakura.

"I came because I would be unavailable in a few days to conclude our agreement."

She gave him an incredulous look. "But you knew what the consequences were. What's wrong with you?"

"It's inevitable. Being incapacitated now is better than later."

Deidara smirked. "Are you one of these people who enjoy pain?"

Itachi slanted him a warning look before returning his attention to Sakura. "The matter of our recent contract is resolved now. However, this would be a good time to completely dissolve our other contract."

A furrow appeared between her brows. "You mean the marriage contract? You're still going on about that?"

"It's not a lie, Sakura," he reiterated clearly.

She stared at him for a moment and then her jaw dropped as it finally sank in. "B-But... What are you talking about? Wasn't the contract already broken two years ago?" Her voice rose as she continued, "I left you the paperwork! Didn't you complete your part?"

"I did." Itachi reached for his storage scroll and extracted the scroll which had been sitting in there for almost two years. "The only thing missing is your blood."

Her face paled. "W-What? It needed blood?"

Nearby, Deidara groaned.

Itachi could not believe what he was hearing. "Surely you recall the ceremony?" he asked dryly.

Her blank expression said it all. He did not know if he ought to feel insulted that the details of their wedding were so insignificant to her. It felt as if the events of that day had been permanently etched in his mind. He still recalled mixing their blood with the ink used to sign the scroll.

Silently, he unfurled the scroll and handed it to her. She took it and scanned through the contents as he watched. With her head bent down like this, he noticed that she no longer bothered to disguise the emergence of her natural pink strands at the roots. Why should she, when she knew that she would be escorted back to Konoha soon?

She lifted her head and her eyes landed on Deidara. The expression she gave the nukenin was a mix of mute appeal and apology. And even though she did not say a word, Deidara seemed to understand, for he shrugged and began to walk away. The exchange was so small and yet so significant.

And it stung.

If he had any doubts about dissolving their marriage, seeing something like that was enough to remove the doubt. Sakura was a different person with Deidara than she was with him. She was _herself_, without pretense or fear. As his wife, that had been the last thing she'd been.

Once they were alone, Sakura turned to him. Her expression was strained. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize…"

"It's fine," he cut in. "Sakura…"

She gave him a wary look. "What?"

"I apologize for…" The words seemed to be lodged in his throat. Swallowing hard, he forced himself to continue, "I shouldn't have reacted in such a manner."

"Huh?"

He wanted to groan out loud. "I reacted inappropriately when confronted with… with the situation earlier."

Her cheeks reddened and she looked away. Her tone was stilted when she returned, "Don't worry about it. You thought we were still married."

Even as he formed the words in his mind, something inside him rebelled at the idea. "No, despite that, I had no right where you're concerned. We all know that."

She exhaled loudly but said nothing, a clear indication as to where he stood in her life. It struck him then that this would be it. She would complete the document and dissolve their marriage. Despite this, he still felt as if he should hear the words from her lips. He would no longer assume to know what went on in her mind.

If was not easy, but he finally managed to ask the question. "Do you wish to remain married to me?"

Tension shot through her. "I thought we've been through this," she said slowly.

"Aa." He needed to end this conversation before he suffered further humiliation. Gesturing to the scroll, he continued, "Perhaps it's time you complete your part."

She bit her lip as she looked down. Without pause, she took out her kunai again and nicked her finger. His eyes followed as the crimson drops descended and landed on the thick parchment. Time seemed to pause momentarily as her blood spread outwards.

The next second, the scroll dissolved into smoke.

And with just that, their marriage truly ended.

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Was that it? There was no sign of the scroll she'd held in her hand just seconds ago. Inexplicably she felt a little lost.

"Sakura, I require your agreement on a certain issue."

The sound of Itachi's deep voice jolted her and she glanced up to find him staring at her with an unreadable expression. Did he feel the same? Or was that feeling of emptiness something she imagined? It had to be just her imagination. She still hadn't quite figured out if she still harbored feelings for Itachi, but at this point it no longer mattered. Whatever it was, she was a nukenin headed for some form of punishment in Konoha and he was the heir of the Uchiha clan. Even if she'd retained some of her old feelings, they did not matter because they could lead to nowhere.

"Sakura?"

She gave herself a mental shake. "I guess you're referring to my return to Konoha?"

"Aa. If you remain with the Iwa nukenin, I could find you when I've completed my tasks."

She frowned. "You found me by tracking Deidara?"

He nodded. "You must give me your word that you'll not attempt to enter Konoha on your own."

"If you say so."

As if she would. Still, a devious part of her mind whispered that since the contract was null, there was nothing forcing her to return to Konoha. Nothing but her honor, at least. Whether the contract existed or not, she had given her word in good faith and she should see it through because Itachi had upheld his end of the deal.

Speaking of the deal, she wasn't the only one to return to Konoha after an unsanctioned absence. What about Sasuke? Itachi hadn't mentioned him so far but it had been a while since she'd last seen her old teammate.

"Any news about Sasuke?" she asked.

Itachi's expression lightened visibly. "He was released from the miko's influence not long ago."

Her eyes widened. "So he remembers you? Really?" At his nod, she went on quickly, "So how is he? How does he feel?"

The corner of his lips tilted. "He is well, and he looks forward to seeing you."

She sobered up. Meeting Sasuke also meant that it was time to return to Konoha. She didn't know how she felt about that. Meeting Sasuke meant that she would lose her freedom, and worse, lose Deidara.

Forcing a smile to her lips, she remarked, "It would be nice to talk to Sasuke again." And then something occurred to her. A little hesitantly, she asked, "Does he know that I'm a nukenin? Does he remember me from the time we were fighting?"

It was as if a shutter came down over his face. "Aa."

"There's something you're not telling me," she accused immediately.

His dark eyes flickered. And then he sighed quietly. "He knows the truth about your departure from Konoha, and he's not pleased."

She bit back a groan. "I guess that's not unexpected." A sigh left her. "But at least that's no longer an issue since we are really divorced now."

"Aa."

A heavy silence hung between them as she averted her eyes. How did one act in a situation like this?

Discomfited, she cleared her throat. "So, do you have any idea when are you coming for me?"

"Perhaps in two or three weeks."

"Mission?" she asked curiously.

"The rest of the tablet." Itachi glanced briefly at the sky before returning his attention to her. "I will return to Konoha now."

"Alright."

He turned and walked away. Her chest felt constricted as she watched his retreat. It was crazy but it felt as if she had just lost something. But how could she lose something that was never hers in the first place?

She sank down on a nearby rock and buried her face in her palms. What a mess! So many things were running through her head that she had no idea how she should begin to sort her thoughts out. It had been so simple when she'd planned things out in Konoha. Leave and make it seem as if she was dead, and then return at some distant point in the future when things had calmed down. If she stayed away long enough, the Uchiha clan would make sure that Itachi married a proper wife, one which would do her duty better than she could. And when she returned, things would be fine. Come to think of it, perhaps her plan had been too idealistic. Or she'd just been too desperate. She recalled having some doubts about the plan then, but she had brushed them away and carried on.

Lifting her head, she stared into the greenery and allowed the memories to sift through her mind.

_It had been five weeks since she had arrived in Yugakure and the plan was all set to run. _

_Sakura glanced across the clearing at Naruto, who looked like he was about to be sick as he stared at one particular spot in the area. Sighing under her breath, she followed his gaze and took in the blood-spattered ground. It looked like the scene of a horrific battle with terrible casualties. One usually didn't encounter such a scene in the peaceful Land of Hot Springs. _

_It was exactly what they had set out to do._

_Clearly, Naruto was not taking it all that well. In fact, he seemed to be swaying on his feet. _

"_Naruto," she called out sharply. _

_The blond jerked up, his blue eyes almost wild as he stared at her. It took a moment before his expression cleared. His throat bobbed a couple of times before he spoke. "I can't help it, Sakura-chan. The scent of your blood… so much of it…" his voice trailed off weakly. _

_She softened and walked to him. Sliding her arms comfortingly around him, she said, "You know it's necessary." _

"_Yeah." And then his muscles bunched as he gripped her shoulders to stare into her face. "But you shouldn't have to do this. We could think of something else." _

"_I have to. It's the best way." _

_Still, she had doubts about it sometimes. What if the Uchiha found out before Itachi took another wife? That would definitely escalate the situation and cause more problems. What if they thought that Tsunade had a hand in this? She did not want to implicate her Shishou at all, considering everything the older woman had done to help her. The problem was hers and she would get herself out of it. And that was why she wouldn't allow Tsunade to know about her plan. _

_Naruto's eyes narrowed. "I can always kill Itachi for you."_

_She gave him a warning look. "Promise me you'll not be aggressive at all towards him, okay?"_

_His eyes widened. "But…"_

"_Promise!" _

_He sighed at her tone. "He deserves at least a Rasengan."_

"_Naruto," she ground out. "The less contact you have with him, the better. Much as I love you, I also know that sometimes you find it hard to watch what you say. The last thing I need is for him to be suspicious. Now PROMISE!"_

"_Fine," he finally muttered reluctantly after a while. "I won't go after him."_

"_Good."_

"_Yo!" _

_Sakura turned in time to see Kakashi freeze in place, his single visible eye fixed on the site of carnage. He was the one who was supposed to 'discover' her death, having been sent here after Sakura had deliberately failed to send in her weekly status report. Naruto wasn't supposed to be here, but she couldn't stop him from coming to lend his support. So there he was, while a perfectly-formed bunshin of his worked fifty miles away on his diplomatic escort mission. _

"_Um… what do you think?" Sakura asked. _

_It took Kakashi a moment to answer. "If anyone thinks to double check, this will definitely convince them. How much of your own blood did you spill? It's the only thing I could smell right now."_

"_Just a little." A lot, but she would not tell her sensei that because the over-protective nin would only worry. "Most of it belongs to the two rogue nins." _

_Kakashi nodded but he looked unconvinced. _

_She took a deep breath. "Ready?" _

"_To say goodbye?" Naruto said as he reached for something in his kunai pouch. "Not really. But here, take this, Sakura-chan." _

_She took the ornate kunai he handed her. "What is this? A gift?"_

_Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Something I've been working on." Then, grinning, he added, "Just make sure you're alone in some secure location exactly two weeks from now, exactly at this time." _

"_Hm…"_

"_Promise!"_

"_Naruto," Kakashi interjected seriously. "Don't make her do something that might endanger her life."_

_Naruto blanched. "Okay. Only when it's convenient, two weeks from now." _

_She smiled at him. "I'll try my best." _

_Kakashi glanced around and then rubbed his hands together. "So this is it, then?" _

_She reached forward and threw her arms around her sensei. "Thanks for everything." _

_Patting her back a little awkwardly, he murmured, "Be careful out there, alright. Don't forget what I taught you." _

_A snort escaped her as she pulled back. "And what did you teach me?" _

_A single dark eye blinked. "I'm offended." _

_Grinning, she punched his chest lightly. "I get it, Sensei. You take care too. And if you get injured, make sure you go see a medic. Don't just keep quiet about it." _

"_Hai… hai…" _

"_I'm sure I'll see you again." She darted a smile at Naruto. "Both of you."_

"_You can bet on it, Sakura-chan."_

"_Until the next time, then."_

_And she turned to walk away. _

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She was married.

_Married! _

Hell, she could still be married right now.

Groaning out loud, Deidara swiped his palm down his face. He had thought that there was something off about that ANBU's relationship with Sakura. Never in a million years would he have guessed that they were married. So what now? He had no idea what he should be thinking but one thing was for sure.

His brilliant plan was shot to hell now.

Expelling a frustrated huff, he rubbed a hand down his face and sank down against a tree trunk in a clearing just five minutes' walk from where he had left the couple. A while ago, he had sensed the ANBU's presence diminishing which meant that the other man had moved away from the area. But that told him nothing. The ANBU leaving did not mean that he had ended things properly with Sakura.

Deidara scowled. Hell, if the ANBU hadn't broken it off with Sakura, he would make sure she would see no reason to stay with that uptight asshole.

"Deidara?"

Her feet stilled in front of him. He looked up and raised a questioning brow at her. Lips twisting into a wry smile, she dropped to her knees in front of him.

"I…" she broke off uncertainly. "I don't know what to say."

There was only one question in his mind and he blurted it out, "Are you still married to that bastard?"

She shook her head silently.

The relief was so acute that he could almost feel it physically wash over him. He let out a bark of laughter. "Well, at least we didn't go far enough that you were committing adultery."

"There's that, I guess," she muttered.

Jumping to his feet, he reached out to ruffle her hair fondly. There was a chance his plan wouldn't go all to hell after all. All he needed now was to work up the nerve to ask her. It would not be an easy conversation, though.

That was when he noticed a pensive look on her face.

"What?" he asked curiously.

"Nothing."

"Just say it, yeah!" he demanded.

"Just thinking about how little time we've known each other. It's less than two years, but it seems like a long time." Her eyes met his and she continued, "It's easy being with you."

Smug male satisfaction radiated through him. "What else do you expect, hm?"

As he pulled her closer, she chuckled against his chest. Hope swelled through him. Perhaps he could convince her, after all.

000

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The green forest of Fire Country blurred past him as Itachi leapt from branch to branch. It had been four days since they had begun to search the country for any telltale signs of the Fire fragment but so far, their search was fruitless. Still, it was not in him to lose faith, or determination. The fragment existed somewhere in the country and he would lead his team to successfully locate it.

At least the intensity of the search provided a welcomed distraction from his less-than-pleasant personal musings. However, at times such as this present moment, he could not help but think about Sakura and the way they had parted. It had been so civil, so unlike their previous partings that it struck something within him. He wished for a greater reaction from her, perhaps. Despite the end of their marriage, he was still seeking a clue which would betray the possibility that she felt something for him.

He was only deluding himself. Sakura had not hesitated in pricking her finger to deliver the drop of blood to the contract. It was clear that whatever feelings she had harbored towards him in the past was no longer there. Instead, it appeared that her affection had been transferred to the Iwa nukenin.

"Are we really going to find it?"

The impatient words cut short his thoughts and Itachi turned to find Genma pulling up beside him.

"Aa." Stopping on a branch, Itachi addressed the rest of his team. "Neji, Tenzou. We will rest for a short while."

Tenzou landed on the ground below and nodded. "A break sounds good."

With his Byakugan activated, Neji declared, "The area is secure."

Tenzou asked, "Where's Aoba's team?"

Neji turned eastwards. "They are approaching from the other direction."

Genma nodded and the senbon clamped between his teeth bobbed. "Pincer formation, huh? I wonder if that would do any good. I didn't expect this to take so long."

"It didn't take the Mizukage and her nins to find theirs, did it?" Tenzou asked idly.

Itachi shook his head.

Genma groaned. "They're probably just lucky." And then under his breath, he added, "Unlike us."

Lips quirking, Itachi commented mildly, "Perhaps they are simply more efficient."

Genma snorted. "Sure they are." And then he dropped onto his back on the ground and promptly shut his eyes. "Wake me up when it's time to go."

"I will keep watch," the Hyuuga offered.

With a nod, Itachi settled against a tree and attempted to blank his thoughts. It was futile, for he could not keep his mind from wandering to thoughts of Sakura. He would have to return her and Sasuke to Konoha soon. Fortunately, from what he had discerned from Sasuke's explanation, it was doubtful that his younger brother would be severely punished. After all, the events were completely out of his control.

Sakura's case was another matter altogether. Hers was a deliberate defection from Konoha. Whatever her reasons might be, the Hokage could not be lenient with her as she had obviously committed a crime. It was unlikely that Sakura would be sentenced to death, but she would definitely be imprisoned for a span of time and most probably stripped of her shinobi status.

It pained him to think of the fate which awaited her. However, he could not keep this a secret from Konoha. It wouldn't be right to do so and besides, Sakura was of the same mind. He would have to bring her straight to the Hokage without allowing anyone else to find out about her to minimize the chaos which would surely ensue.

"Taichou."

Itachi's eyes snapped open to find Neji standing in front of him. Raising a questioning brow, he pushed himself to his feet. Something must have happened.

Without preamble, the Hyuuga reported, "I sense an anomaly towards the west, where we had come from earlier. It could be the fragment."

Itachi straightened to his feet immediately.

"Let's go."

000

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><p>000<p> 


	19. Chapter 18

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

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><p><span><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 18<strong>

They had found an abandoned rundown hut deep in the heart of Hot Water Country soon several days after that ANBU had left. Surrounded by nature, they picked, hunted and fished to sustain themselves, and wasted the rest of the days lazing around with each other. Deidara knew that this wouldn't last. Eventually reality would intrude and they would have some difficult decisions to make. But for now, he just wanted to spend time with her.

This evening, they rambled on about nothing in particular as they sat on the porch outside the hut, taking sips of sake from a chipped saucer. It occurred to Deidara then that the last time he was able to converse like this was long ago back in Iwa.

"In Konoha, when we sit on top of the Hokage Mountain, we could see a starry sky like this," she told him. "But I think we can see the stars much clearer from here, so it's better."

"It's just better here because of the company, don't you think, hm?"

She snorted. "Maybe. What's the night sky like in Iwa? I've been there a long time ago but I didn't get a chance to enjoy the outdoors like this."

"There's usually lots of cloud, but sometimes we can see the stars." Grinning, he folded his hands behind his head and laid down on the porch. "Not that I paid much attention to the stars those times I was out."

Her face blocked the night sky as she propped herself over him. "Why?" she asked curiously.

"Why look at the sky when there was a lush kunoichi sitting on my lap, yeah?" he asked.

She swatted his chest. "I thought you were pretty young when you left Iwa?"

"Not so young that I don't know what to do with women."

"You're unbelievable."

He flipped over and his motion forced her down on her back, reversing their position. A pair of brown eyes stared up at him and much to his gratification, there was a blush on her cheeks.

"What color are they?" he asked.

"Huh?"

He thumbed the corner of her left eye. "These, yeah. The brown is a disguise, isn't it? I can sense more chakra in them than normal eyes."

She blinked. "You can?"

"Only when I'm this close, yeah. So tell me."

"Green."

He tilted his head and continued to stare at her. He could easily picture her with green eyes and it would be much more striking than the current nondescript brown.

And then she asked mischievously, "You want to see them?"

Surprised, he asked, "Now?"

Grinning now, she nodded. "I use chakra to modify the scattering of light in the stroma, so the effect is not permanent."

That meant nothing to him, but then as he watched with amazement, the brown of her irises began to gradually shift and turn lighter to a shade of hazel before it settled into an arresting shade of green which reminded him of a leaf covered with a layer of water. The pressure in his chest built, reminding him to breath and he exhaled quickly.

"So?" she asked, raising a brow. There was a light of expectation in those eyes. "What do you think?"

"I like it, yeah." They were captivating, and they suited her features better than the brown. "Can you leave them like this?"

She smiled a strangely wistful smile. "Why not?"

"What else did you change?" he asked.

"My hair."

His eyes shifted to the black strands which had always looked a little stiff to him. Sifting his fingers through the locks and noticing the emergence of lighter colored roots, he asked, "What color are they supposed to be?"

"Pink."

He froze, and then stared down at her incredulously. "Right. Not funny at all. What is it, yeah?"

Her irritation showed in the furrow between her brows. "Pink," she repeated flatly. "You have problem with that?"

No way! The fingers tangled in her hair stilled momentarily. And then he concentrated on parting the dark strands to see if she was really telling the truth. Pink? Really? His artistic side found it hard to reconcile the green with the pink. Who on earth could be born with such a combination?

"Stop it already!" she snapped and reached up to yank his fingers off her. "It's pink."

A burst of laughter left his lips as he took in her expression, an adorable mix of annoyance and embarrassment. The color of her hair was obviously something she was conscious about, and he couldn't really blame her for it. Pink? Seriously?

Involuntarily, his eyes shifted south.

Pink?

Oh, now he was _really_ curious. And his curiosity was making blood rush from his head to somewhere else. He'd never seen one with pink hair. He _wanted_ to see it.

"Just what are you thinking now?" she asked warily.

His eyes met hers. "I'm thinking of what's under your clothes. If it's… pink."

Her cheeks reddened visibly. "Oh."

Still propped over her, he ran a hand down her side to her hips. "Can I look, hm?"

Her throat bobbed as she swallowed. He could see a flicker of indecision in her eyes and wondered just what could make them take that final step. They had their share of heated moments in the past but there was always this invisible barrier that stopped him from going any further. It wasn't anything she had said, though. Just that she'd never tried to push for more and he'd never tried to press her to do so. This encounter would probably end the same way; with them cuddling each other to sleep.

Not that he would ever voluntarily admit to _cuddling_.

In any case, that didn't stop him from trying. With a smirk, the hand at her hip slid up under her top and traced over her bare skin. She shivered and his breath hitched when her green eyes turning stormy. It hit him like a punch and he decided that he could get addicted to the sight.

Encouraged, his hand wandered further up and cupped her. A breathy moan left her lips just a moment before he dipped down to capture her lips. Her fingers were tangled in his hair now, grasping as if she didn't want to let go. Desire shot through him, thick and fast. He wanted to do all sorts of things to her and he wanted her to want every bit of it.

When he came up for air, it was to find her staring at him with an expression he'd never seen before.

"Deidara. Please…" she whispered huskily.

His eyes widened in comprehension.

Finally.

000

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Almost three weeks had passed since they had met up again and Sakura could only describe this period as idyllic, despite the conversation they had two weeks ago about her past. Touchingly, Deidara had been outraged by how she'd been treated, but what was odd was his comment that he understood why Itachi had done it. He had then declared that it no longer mattered, since they were together now. The conversation had only served to confuse her, as if she wasn't confused enough already.

Seated across the wobbly wooden table, Deidara was concentrating on sculpting a figurine. She propped her chin up on her elbows and watched as his talented fingers shaped the clay until it was a perfect figure of a bird. And then a little chakra was injected into its form and it took life, hopping on the surface of the table until it reached the edge, where it launched off toward the window. With a leap, it flew outside.

Leaning back, Deidara declared, "That one will take the place of the earlier scout, yeah. It'll keep a lookout for us."

"You're really good at making sculptures," she commented.

He smiled smugly. "It's a talent, yeah."

"Sure is. I wouldn't be able to make one to save my life."

"If you ever need someone to save your life, I'm here." He fixed a pair of blue eyes on her. "You know that, right?"

"Right."

"As long as we're together, I'll watch your back." He held up a lump of clay. "With some help, of course. Now who else would do that for you?"

Naruto and Kakashi, she immediately thought. Probably Sasuke and maybe even Itachi. The latter had jumped right in the path of an attack meant for her, after all. As messed up as their relationship had been, at least this one thing was clear to her; Itachi cared for her enough to put her well-being before his. It was a shame that she hadn't known this back in Konoha.

Discomfited by the direction of her thoughts and feeling ridiculously unfaithful to Deidara, she stood up and made her way to the corner of the kitchen. There, she picked up the empty wooden bucket and stopped by his side.

"I'm heading out to the well. Are you coming?"

He yawned and stretched his arms up high to ruffle her hair. "You go ahead. I need some rest. Hardly slept last night, yeah." He shot her a meaningful look. "Not that I got much satisfaction, despite all my hard work."

Not entirely sure how to respond, she forced out a chuckle. Last night, she had finally decided to take the final step in their physical relationship. It had started out amazing but when it finally came to it she found herself hesitating, much to her frustration. Somehow, even in the haze of pleasure, the blond had managed to pull away. Deidara was making light of it now, but she'd been unsettled about it and had stayed awake the whole night wondering what had gone wrong. It couldn't be in some strange way because of Itachi, right? That was just absurd.

Or was it because she knew that she would be heading back to Konoha in the near future and her subconscious was trying to prevent her from getting into a deeper involvement with Deidara?

Feeling a stab of guilt, she said, "I'm really sorry about last night, Deidara. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"And here I am about to ask you if there's something wrong. You beat me to it." After a short pause, he added softly, "I thought you wanted it. Otherwise I wouldn't have tried to-"

"I wanted it," she interrupted quickly. "But…" It didn't feel right, she added silently.

He watched her intently, and then nodded slowly. "It's your decision, yeah." And then he grinned lightly. "But better sooner than later. Or else I might just lose control one day, force you down and have my way with you."

This time, her chuckle was genuine. "Now you just made yourself sound really desperate."

He thumped his chest. "So what if I am? I have _needs!_"

She slapped him upside his head. "Baka!"

And with him muttering in the background, she left the hut.

Humming tunelessly as she swung the bucket back and forth with each step, she walked towards the forested area around the old well. It wasn't exactly near but it would do. After all, it wasn't as if they were paying for their accommodations. Now that she thought about it, this was probably the only place they'd lived in for more than a week over the time they'd known each other. Before that, she was living with Eda-san. And before that, Itachi's house.

Her lips quirked at the thought that she'd always thought of that place as Itachi's. One would have thought that since she was there more often than Itachi that she would naturally thought of it as her home. But over that one year, she had felt out of place more often than not. She supposed she could have redecorated or something to place her signature on the place but the idea never occurred to her back then.

Her steps stilled and she frowned. Maybe she hadn't tried hard enough. Maybe she had approached everything wrong. Maybe she should have just told those busybodies to shut up and let her run her own personal life without interference, or simply ignored them instead of allowing every little word to hit her so hard.

And maybe she was just being stupid, thinking about such things at this late stage.

Just then, a figure suddenly flashed in front of her.

She immediately tensed, and then relaxed when she took in his identity.

"Yo, Sakura-chan!"

"Naruto!" she cried out happily.

Dropping her bucket and launching forward, they met in a bear hug. Naruto was grinning when he pulled back to study her face. There was a slight dimming of the light in his eyes after a moment, and a look of concern appeared.

"What's wrong?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. Just surprised to see you, that's all."

"Just surprised? Don't you miss me?" he whined.

"Tsk! Don't exaggerate! I just thought that you'd be busy in Konoha, that's all."

Naruto shrugged. "Yeah. There is a lot of stuff going on there. But the one I want to see isn't in Konoha, so here I am on a short visit." His eyes met hers. "Things haven't been the same without you there."

She broke their gaze and bent down to retrieve the wooden bucket. It was time to tell him. When she straightened, she said in a quiet tone, "I'll probably be back in Konoha sooner than you think."

"Eh?" Looking confused, he asked, "How so?"

She took a deep breath. "Remember the deal I made with Itachi? I promised to let him bring me back to Konoha."

Naruto's eyes widened. "What? When?"

"Soon. Once he finishes his current mission. So yeah, watch out for the nukenin being dragged back to Konoha."

"You're not a nukenin!" he exploded angrily. "Don't ever say that, Sakura-chan."

She gave him a sad look. "No matter how you look at it, I _am_ a nukenin. I left the village for personal gains."

"You're not disloyal to Konoha and you intend to return some day."

"I doubt that makes much of a difference. Besides, now that Itachi knows the reason, I can't just go back and claim that I have amnesia for the past couple of years and couldn't get back. Things would be far worse when Itachi exposes the lie."

"Surely he won't expose you."

"We don't know that."

Agitated, Naruto ran his fingers through his already-messy hair. "I can't let you go back as a nukenin!" Turning to her, he implored, "Let me bring you back. We'll come up with something. And I'll talk to Itachi."

She shook her head quickly. "No, Naruto. You promised not to get involved, remember?"

He sagged. "But-"

"You already promised!" she insisted. "So stay out of it and pretend you never knew I was alive all this time, alright. I don't want you to get into trouble."

"I don't care about that!"

"I know you don't, but I do. So just to be sure, promise me again!"

He sighed heavily and then nodded. "Fine, Sakura-chan."

"Now let's talk about something else."

A stubborn look flashed over his features. "But-"

"Please," she said softly. "Now is there anything else you're here for? How's everyone back in Konoha?"

Naruto blinked, and then slapped his forehead. "Oh yeah. That's why I came." He glanced past her then, and muttered something under his breath.

She stared at him in confusion. "Huh? What is it, Naruto?"

"You'll see." Grabbing her arm, he pulled her forward away from the direction of the well. "Come on. Let's go."

It was then that she felt the warning flare of chakra which stilled her steps. Deidara was nearby and from his chakra signature, she understood his suspicions. His clay bird must have spotted Naruto and went to report to him. It dawned on her then that he had never met her teammate.

"Come on out Deidara." Giving him an encouraging smile, she added, "He's one of the teammates I told you about."

Deidara stepped out of the shadows and narrowed his eyes at the other shinobi. "Orange. I'm guessing you must be Naruto, yeah."

Naruto laughed in amusement as he saluted. "The one and only."

The Iwa nin took a couple of steps forward, and then frowned. "Where is the other one? There's someone else out there. Hey, show yourself!" he yelled.

Concerned, she swung towards Naruto. "Tell me that you didn't bring anyone with you."

Mischief lighted Naruto's features. "I heard that a certain ANBU is away on a mission, so I decided to bring a friend to meet you."

Deidara cursed under his breath as Sakura felt blood drain from her face at the thought that Naruto had led someone here.

Clamping her hands around Naruto's arms and shaking him violently, she snapped, "Who are you talking about, Naruto?"

The blond grinned so widely that his eyes crinkled. Pointing over her shoulder, he said, "Turn around and look there."

She spun around to find a dark figure materializing from a cloud of smoke.

Sakura gasped. "Sasuke?"

Sasuke gave her a curt nod but his eyes were on Deidara. "Who is he?"

She blinked. He couldn't remember Deidara? He had _sparred_ with Deidara just a few months ago.

"This is Deidara," she told him.

"Heh! Memory loss, huh. Too bad I still remember your ugly face," Deidara sneered. "What are you doing here? I thought you've been captured or something, yeah."

Eyes narrowing, Sasuke lunged forward only to be stilled by Naruto. "Hey! Hey! Don't start fighting now. We don't have much time."

She ran forward and stopped just in time before she hugged her dark-haired teammate. Despite their closeness in the past, she wasn't sure how he would react now. "It's good to see you. Are you alright? You remember everything?"

"Not everything. There are many blanks in the span of time when I was with the miko," he replied quietly as he darted a cautious look over her shoulder. "Itachi told me that he's your nukenin companion."

"You don't remember him at all?"

"Not really. So is it true?"

She nodded. "Deidara and I have been partners for a while now."

Sasuke gave the blond Iwa nin a cold look. "Then I'll refrain from killing him."

"Why you…" Deidara ground out threateningly.

"Just let it go, Deidara," she chastised as she grabbed the back of his shirt. She swung towards her blond teammate. "Not that I'm unhappy to see Sasuke, but isn't he confined by Itachi?"

As Sasuke scowled at the statement, Naruto grinned widely. "Don't you have any faith in my skills, Sakura-chan?"

She stared at him wordlessly. Did he really manage to break Sasuke out of whatever confinement technique Itachi had used? Exactly how strong was Naruto? But then again, Naruto _had_ defeated many powerful opponents. It was just that she'd always regarded Itachi as being somewhat omnipotent, and Naruto was… Well, Naruto was Naruto. She clearly needed to reset her mind when it came to her loud-mouthed friend.

"Itachi-nii-san's skills have obviously deteriorated," Sasuke remarked drily.

Naruto thumped his chest proudly. "Or my techniques are just _that_ good."

"What wishful thinking, Dobe," Sasuke muttered.

Eyes now narrowed in offense, Naruto retorted, "Oi, be thankful that I bothered to bust you out of that place. I could've left you there to rot, Teme!"

"Who asked you to break me out of there, anyway?" Sasuke shot back.

Naruto bristled. "I thought you'd like to talk to Sakura a bit before your brother drags you back to Konoha! Or would you rather do it with him watching you like a hawk? Eh?"

Before Sakura to intervene, Deidara leaned down to mutter, "These squabbling kids are your teammates, huh?"

She turned to find him grinning. Shaking her head with a mix of exasperation and amusement, she replied, "They have their good points, believe it or not."

"If you say so."

"Oi, I heard that!" Naruto piped up.

Sasuke's expression turned stiff. "Hn."

She raised her hands up. "Enough!" Turning her attention to her black-haired teammate, she said softly, "We have a lot to catch up on."

"Aa."

"Hehe!" Naruto chuckled as he clamped a hand around Deidara's arm. "Let's go for a spar, dattebayo!"

"Oi! Let me go, yeah!"

As she watched with amusement, Naruto dragged the struggling and cursing Deidara away from them. Slowly, she turned back to face Sasuke who was staring at her. Or rather, at her head. No doubt noticing the lack of hitai-ate.

"You are really a nukenin," he observed blandly.

An uncomfortable laugh escaped her lips. "It sure looks like it, doesn't it?"

"You deliberately up and left. Do you like being seen as a traitor to Konoha?"

"Look who's talking," she muttered.

He gave her a hard look. "I'm not a traitor. I never had any intention to leave the village in the first place. Apparently, that's not the case with you. Itachi filled me in with the main points, but I find it hard to believe that you just left like that."

She hated that he sounded so disappointed in her. But it wasn't as if she'd never wondered if she'd tried hard enough before giving up. "I felt like I had to leave at that time," she said quietly.

He gave her a searching look. "Did you ever thinking of going back?"

Holding his gaze, she said certainly, "Of course I did. I planned on laying low before eventually going back to Konoha with a story about amnesia or something." She gave Sasuke a wry smile. "Things didn't quite go the way I'd planned, though. For a while, I managed to lay low and then I found out something that I just couldn't ignore."

Sasuke frowned. "What was that?"

"A rumor about you. It prompted me to come out of hiding, and that was when I met Deidara. I was looking for you all this while."

His eyes narrowed. "Tell me everything."

She nodded, and then began to recount the day her plans had changed.

_Standing just inside of the front door, Sakura called out, "I'm heading out to the market, Eda-san." _

_A wrinkly face popped out to peer at her from behind a wooden partition. "Get me some of those moonflower roots while you're there."_

_Sakura nodded, strapping her tanto to her back. "About a handful is enough?" she asked as she reached out for the rattan basket next to the door. _

"_Make it two. I have a large order for the poison neutralizer potion from Suna. You can help me pound the ingredients when you get back. My back is not what it used to be."_

"_Oh." Making sure to mask her wariness, she asked brightly, "So when are the customers coming to pick them up?" What if they recognized her? _

_Eda Aiko's brows almost disappeared into her thin hairline. "Why, if I didn't know better, I'd say you're trying to avoid them." _

_Sakura laughed weakly. Of course Eda suspected something. She should have known better than to think that she could fool this old retired kunoichi. Eda was someone she had met years ago in the Suna marketplace during one of her stints to help Gaara with their medical program. They had bickered over the last of a rare seed a seller was hawking. Eda had won, of course. And since then, Sakura had kept in contact with her. She was one of the few people Sakura trusted enough with some of the truth about her predicament, and the old kunoichi had offered to house her once she understood the situation. _

"_No one will recognize you anyway," Eda pointed out. "Disguised like that and all. Even an expert like me can't tell your chakra from a random civilian's. You have nothing to worry about. Now go and get me the roots. Go!" _

_With a grin, Sakura left the old rickety house. _

_Inhaling the invigorating scent of the sea air, she swung her basket lightheartedly as she made her way down to the coastal village. She had been staying here with Eda for the past two months, and with each day that passed the darkness and sorrow in her heart lessened. Leaving Konoha had been a good move. It was slowly healing her. _

_It did not take long for her to reach the market place. She went to the apothecary and bought a bagful of moonflower roots as well as some other ingredients for her own formulations. After that, she wandered around the market, stopping at the occasional stalls to purchase whatever that caught her fancy. _

_The selection of colorful vegetables seemed to call to her, and she made a beeline for the stall at the end of the market street. Smiling, the vendor waved her over._

"_Come have a look. These arrived fresh from River Country this morning." _

_She smiled at the elderly man, and then bent over to pick up a cabbage. Eda liked pickled cabbage, so maybe she could make some later today. _

"_That looks familiar."_

_Sakura glanced up, surprise. "What looks familiar?" she asked a little warily. _

_The vendor pointed at the engraved symbol at the hilt of her tanto. The tiny Uchiha symbol. "That one. Just saw it last week."_

_She nearly toppled over and dropped the cabbage. _

"_Oh, really?" she said casually, trying not to panic. What did this mean? "Where did you see it?"  
><em>

"_This young man wearing a shirt with the same thing at the collar came by. Same black hair as you, but all spiky." The elderly man chuckled as he shook his head. _

_Her eyes began to widen at the description. Black hair? Spiky? Was it Shisui? What would Shisui do if he saw her? _

"_He bought a big bag of tomatoes. I can't believe he could finish all that, but he said he liked them. Unusual, that is."_

_Eh? Tomatoes? As far as she knew, Shisui hated all forms of vegetable. Who else liked tomatoes and fit the other descriptions? She frowned. It could not possibly be Sasuke. Sasuke was… She have herself a mental shake before she could complete the thought and bawl her eyes out. This had to be a coincidence. But there was one way she could find out._

_Reaching into a compartment in her medic pouch, she took out a slightly crumpled photo. The glimpse of the faces depicted there sent a wave of melancholy rippling through her. It was the latest picture of Team 7, taken on the day of Sasuke's seventeenth birthday. Kakashi stood at the back, his visible eye crinkled as he smiled under his mask while Naruto and Sasuke flanked him. Being the shortest of all of them, she stood in front. _

_Showing the photo to the vendor, she asked, "Is it one of them?" _

_The elderly man squinted at the picture. "My old eyes are not quite as good as it was. But I think that looks like him," he said. _

_Sakura's eyes widened as she saw the man tapping on Sasuke's face. If he really saw her teammate, it meant that he was still alive. But how could that be? As far as they knew, he was dead. Or was he? Sasuke had not returned to Konoha after his mission so long ago and was therefore presumed dead. For all they knew, he was still alive. If that was the case, why did he not return to Konoha? Had something gone wrong? Or was he on some kind of undercover mission? Or had he become a missing nin?_

_Wait, wait, she was getting ahead of herself. She did not even know if it was Sasuke. The old man might have seen another Uchiha and had mistaken him from Sasuke, and since most of them shared the same features, it was an easy error. _

_She needed to find out for sure. _

"_Do you know where he went?" she asked. _

_The vendor's brows furrowed in thought. "He might have mentioned the north. Yes, Earth Country, I think." _

"_Thank you."_

"_Are you taking that?"_

_She looked down to find that she was still holding the cabbage. "Oh, right. Yes. I'm taking it. And four tomatoes as well, please."_

_As distracted as she was by the possibility that Sasuke was alive, she was barely conscious of going through the motions of paying for the fresh produce. Then she slowly made her way home. _

_By the time she reached the house she shared with Eda, she had made a decision. _

_If Sasuke was out there, she would find him._

_And if she found him, she would beat him to a pulp_.

"Beat me to a pulp, huh," Sasuke muttered when she finished her story.

She smiled. "Maybe that was an exaggeration. I didn't really know what to think at that point. But you owe me now. Without me, you'd still be lost somewhere."

"Unlikely. You might have helped but it was Itachi who found me in the end," Sasuke said flatly.

"What?" she exclaimed indignantly. "I was the one tracking you. Itachi didn't have a clue until he found me."

"Hn." He then gave her a pointed look. "I also heard that you married him."

She almost winced. "We _were_ married. The contract was broken just recently."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

He looked annoyed. "Why marry him? It's all a stupid set up by the Uchiha clan. You should know that."

She sighed and then looked away in embarrassment. "I guess… maybe I liked him back then."

All that greeted her words were silence. After a while, curiosity set in and she darted a glance at Sasuke to find him giving her an odd look. It could be described as disbelief mingled with annoyance.

"What?" she asked warily.

"I find it hard to believe that you liked him. You hardly know him," he replied after another moment of silence. "How could you like him?"

She tensed. "I was assigned to his squad during my training for ANBU. I saw quite a lot of him."

Sasuke made a derisive sound. "You saw the ANBU captain, not Uchiha Itachi."

His words hit her with the impact of Tsunade's punch. It was not as if this thought hadn't occurred to her before. But no one had pointed it out so starkly. It was true that she only knew Itachi as the much-admired ANBU captain and there had been hardly any personal interaction between them, and that remained true even after their marriage.

She told him wryly, "It would've been nice to have you around back then to say this to my face. You probably would've knocked some sense into me and we could've avoided this mess."

He scowled at her. "You really should have known better."

Rolling her eyes, she retorted, "I get it, alright! It was a mistake. Besides, it's all over now."

"It's not over since you have yet to be punished for defecting," he said tersely. "Why did you go so far?"

"I thought you knew the reason."

"It's not a good enough reason to abandon your village," he told her flatly.

She winced. Again, it wasn't as if the thought never occurred to her. "Fine, I was just running away." A sigh left her and she admitted, "Maybe that's the reason I feel like I need to go back, because I know now that running away isn't a solution. No matter how bad it was, I should have thought of some other way to deal with it."

Sasuke said nothing but his expression told her that he agreed with her last statement.

Placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder, she said, "It's alright. I'm prepared to face the consequences."

"I still don't like it," he stated bluntly as he folded his arms over his chest.

Not knowing what else to say, she gave him a small smile. This was Sasuke's way of showing he cared and she appreciated it. But she brought this upon herself and she would have to deal with it on her own.

Softly, she said, "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. Now, tell me what happened since you left Konoha for that solo mission so many years ago."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Try," she pressed. "It's your turn to talk."

With a long-suffering expression, he began to talk.

000

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><p>000<p>

The trail had been indistinct and thus they'd taken several days to pinpoint the location of the Fire fragment. They'd finally found it just to the east of the border to the Land of Rivers. The fragment was in a valley between two mountains, and as with the other fragments, it had been hidden from view until Tenzou had broken several layers of protective barriers.

Now they were working on bringing it down to the ground. As he was the only one present with a dominant fire-natured chakra, Itachi found himself kneeling within a circle with red seals surrounding him while the rest of his team formed a perimeter around the area. His palms were pressed against two of the seals on the ground, and from another seal, a stream of red chakra emerged. The dense chakra reached up thirty feet in the air until it met with its target, whereupon it exploded into a red net.

Caught in this net was the Fire fragment.

Fingers of protective blue fire licked around the fragment, resisting Itachi's attempt to break it free. His chakra on its own was insufficient for the task, therefore the red seals on the ground acted as a booster. He could sense that the constant pull was beginning to have an effect and the fragment's protective barrier would give way soon.

Itachi shook his head to dislodge the lock of hair obscuring his view. Frowning, he noticed that the wind gust around them had grown stronger unnaturally fast. Shifting his eyes to the Hyuuga, he noted that the younger nin's Byakugan was already activated. He also didn't miss the telltale furrow between Neji's brows.

A moment later, a pair of pale eyes met his. At his nod, Neji reported, "There's something heading our way. I couldn't make out what it is, but it is large."

"What do you mean you can't make out what it is?" Genma asked.

"It's invisible."

Tenzou frowned. "It's invisible? What about its chakra?"

Neji shook his head. "None detected. It's difficult to describe. The only sign that it's heading this way is a momentary trail of disturbance, almost like its surrounding are parting for it to come through."

"That's strange," Tenzou muttered as Genma nodded in agreement.

Hands still pressed on the seals marking the ground, Itachi asked, "From which direction?"

The veins around his eyes thickened and then Neji declared, "West. Whatever it is, it is definitely about to reach us soon." He then glanced downwards. "Taichou?"

From his position on the ground, Itachi shook his head. "It's not ready." And it was definitely not wise to continue now, he thought as he broke the contact between his palm and the seals. "Fan out and take cover."

With that command, the other three nins took to the trees and disappeared from his sight. Wariness thrummed through Itachi as he focused his attention towards the west with his Sharingan activated.

It did not take long before it appeared. Just beyond the valley where the trees were beginning to grow denser, the air began to shimmer.

And then out of nowhere, the miko materialized. Her long red hair blew in the wind as her golden eyes fixed onto him.

"Look who we have here." She smirked as she turned to focus on the Fire fragment. "I see you've done the hard work. You have my appreciation."

"Such a thing is unnecessary, for I do not intend to relinquish the fragment to you," Itachi told her bluntly.

She raised a condescending brow. "You make it sound as if you have a choice."

Itachi's eyes narrowed as he scanned the area beyond the miko, and then he called out, "Hyuuga, please confirm that there is no one else in our vicinity."

From his position in the trees, Neji reported, "The miko is alone."

The miko smiled at the Hyuuga. "You may address me as Kagami if you wish. I sense power in you."

Neji said nothing to that. Instead, he leapt to the ground and came towards them. In the periphery of his vision, Itachi could see Tenzou and Genma doing the same.

Her pattern was different this time, Itachi thought. She usually has a shinobi or two to aid her with the retrieval of the fragments. The fact that the miko was alone meant that she was either foolishly over-confident, or that she didn't need backup this time. The latter spelled trouble for them because none of them knew what to expect from her.

"We will not allow you to obtain the fire fragment," he said mildly.

"Oh?" She looked amused. "And how are you planning on stopping me?"

Her hand stretched out and began to glow. Before their eyes, one tablet fragment materialized in each palm.

Itachi grimaced in displeasure. Two? He knew that the Lightning one was with her, but what about the other one?

"I thought she only has one? There are two there," Genma asked, clearly surprised.

Itachi eyed it intently, studying its nature. When he finally realized what it was, he murmured incredulously, "The water fragment."

Tenzou glanced at him sharply. "Wasn't that supposed to be with the Mizukage?"

The miko laughed. "There is a number of very accommodating Mist nins out there. I didn't even need to use my special technique. Fortunately for me, the one currently in the Mizukage's hands is a fake. And this makes all the difference."

She seemed to know a lot about the fragment, which prompted Itachi to ask, "Why are you seeking the fragments?"

"Why? Isn't it obvious? Possession of a fragment gives one the ability to manipulate the relevant element." Her eyes gleamed. "With more fragments, the level of power increases exponentially. And when all five are combined, the strength would be unimaginable."

"It can't be that great," Genma remarked skeptically. "They are just stones."

"Once all five are combined, a new ability is released. Those…" Her eyes paused at Hyuuga Neji and him before she continued, "… with Kekkei Genkai would be its primary target."

Keeping his tone even, Itachi asked, "How so?"

"It could absorb one's Kekkei Genkai and allow its owner to utilize the power."

So that was what it was, Itachi thought grimly. Not far from him, Tenzou hissed out in displeasure.

"Of course I don't possess all the pieces now. But that's only a matter of time. With two fragments, you don't stand a chance." Kagami smirked. "Shall I demonstrate?"

Itachi's eyes narrowed as he tensed in preparation.

"Let's see what you think of this," she added.

And then she brought the pieces together.

Energy thrummed in the air as the two stone fragments merged amidst a blinding glow. Eyes gleaming with sinister anticipation, the miko smiled as the pulses of energy intensified. When the light finally dimmed, what were previously two fragments was now a section of stone mask.

Satisfaction radiating from her, Kagami held it up and then pressed it to her face. The mask covered her right eye and bisected her face diagonally to cover part of her left jaw. Itachi instantly felt a sensation of foreboding.

"I can't wait for the Fire fragment to join these two." Her eyes narrowed. "Now, let's get started, shall we?"

Itachi braced himself as Kagami stretched forward a hand and then clenched.

A geyser of water erupted from the ground, and Itachi leapt up into a tree to avoid being hit. And then more shot up from the ground, forcing them to move erratically. Water was rapidly ponding around them and as Itachi ran, he reached into his weapons pouch. Out of the periphery of his vision, he saw Tenzou forming seals.

"Katon: Hōsenka Tsumabeni."

"Mokuton: Shichūrō no Jutsu!"

Itachi's fire-infused shuriken converged towards his target, just as the ground rumbled. Wooden post shot upwards from the saturated ground and surrounded the miko. However, simply she dematerialized and thus rendered their attacks completely ineffective.

"Ah, I see you're not playing around," she remarked as she reappeared just outside the cage of wooden posts. "Well then, I'd better do the same."

She clenched her hands again and this time, her fist began to spark. With the brightness illuminating her vicious expression, the power intensified until she flung her arm outwards.

Lightning.

As the sparks flickered ominously across the surface of the water and headed straight towards them, Itachi realized that this would not be an easy battle.

000

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><p>000<p> 


	20. Chapter 19

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

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><p><span><strong>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 19<strong>

That night, hours after he had been thankfully left alone by the annoying blond loudmouth Sakura called a teammate, Deidara made his way back to the hut. He had been soaking in the natural hotsprings. He just felt like it, and it had nothing to do with the fact that his entire body was aching after that damned sparring session with the shinobi with an insane reserve of chakra. What the hell was Naruto, anyway?

Most importantly, the session in the hotsprings gave him some time to think. After what he had overheard of Sakura's conversation with her teammate earlier, he knew that he could no longer wait until the last minute broach the subject as he'd planned on doing. Last minute would have meant that she was left with very little time to over-think things, which was exactly what he was aiming for. Unfortunately, that was no longer an option.

The hut appeared. With each step, he moved closer to it and the level of his anxiety rose. Once there, he pushed the door open and his attention immediately focused on Sakura, who was seated on the bench at the other end of the hut staring out of the window. With a grimace of determination, he walked towards her. It was time for them to talk.

Planting himself beside her, he waited until she turned to face him. It was best to get it over with then, much as he disliked certain types of conversations. This was a necessary evil.

"Hi. You've been out in the springs?" she asked, standing up and flicking a strand of wet hair from his face.

"Don't go," he blurted out abruptly.

Her hand dropped. Eyes widening, she stuttered, "W-What?"

He swallowed hard. His tone was calmer but no less urgent when he reiterated, "Don't go."

Her brows knitted in confusion. "Go where?"

"Back to Konoha."

Right before his eyes, she flinched. And then she broke their gaze to stare out of the window once again. Voice muted, she asked, "How? How did you find out?"

He shrugged. "Does it matter? It's true, isn't it? You're really planning on handing yourself on a platter to Konoha?"

She nodded once. There was not even a hint of hesitation, he observed in disbelief. What the hell could she be thinking? Was she suicidal or what? Annoyance shot through him and he shoved her, sending her down to the nearby bench.

"Are you out of your mind?" he shouted. "Oi, look at me, yeah."

She gave him an uneasy look. "I don't know what to say."

"Tell me you've changed your mind and that you're not going back."

Regret flashed across her features. "I can't keep running, Deidara."

"Then don't. Come with me and you won't have to run."

She looked bewildered. "What are you talking about, Deidara? Iwa might not come after you, but once it's known that I'm alive, Konoha's hunternins would hunt me down. How long could I keep on evading them? I can't live like this forever."

He sighed and admitted, "I'm not running from Iwa anymore because I'm going back there to stay. For good."

Shock rendered her speechless. And then, "What? How?" Then jumping to her feet, she reached out to grab his arm. "Explain. Now!"

He pulled her hand off his arm only to push her back down on the bench. Sighing out loud, he sat down beside her and took her hands. Staring at their joined fingers, he smiled slightly and wondered what she would think of his story.

"When I woke up in Iwa a month ago, I saw someone I didn't expect to see again." His eyes met hers. "My sister."

"You have a sister?"

"I thought she was dead." He grimaced at the unpleasant reminder of the past. "I thought the old man sent her out to this suicide mission and she died trying to complete it, yeah." He felt her squeeze his hands, and a wry smile crossed his lips. "But that's all just a cover story, it seems. She was sent out on a long-term infiltration mission. She was alive all along and I thought she was dead."

"You must be very happy to see her."

He snorted. "For about two seconds, yeah. Then she decked me, that bitch!"

Sakura blinked in surprise. "Eh? What did you do?"

Offended, he pulled back. "Why must you assume that it was something I did, hm?"

Rolling her eyes, she asked him drily, "So you didn't do anything?"

He glanced away and scowled. "I was pissed at Onoki for sending her to die. Hell, I was pissed at the whole d amned village because no one did anything to stop it. So I decided to pay them back."

Sakura winced. "What happened?"

Rubbing his chest and grimacing at the still-unfamiliar smoothness, he told her, "I stole a forbidden kinjutsu and defected. You know the rest of the story."

"You became a missing nin."

He smirked. "Not before I destroyed a good chunk of the village, yeah."

She scowled disapprovingly. "That's nothing to be proud of."

"You should have seen it. That was a brilliant explosion. It was so big that it lit up the whole sky over Iwa!" He grinned as he recalled the excitement. "Of course I'd done better ones since then. But that was really my first, so it's sort of close to my heart, yeah."

Pained resignation settled upon her features. "You really need to get rid of that obsession of yours. People died there, you know."

"Hey, you have your priorities, and I have mine," he defended.

"I'm not arguing with you about this because it's pointless. Anyway, you haven't told me how you got out of being punished."

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, and then his hand slid down to his chest again. "Ah, well. The old man sort of understood why I did it. And when he realized that the mouth on my chest is gone, he's not so mad anymore. I guess Onee-chan helped talked him out of throwing me in a cell. But he's holding me to the condition that I won't defect again, or be disloyal to the village." He shrugged. "So I guess that means I'm off the hook, yeah."

"That's… too simple." She gave him an assessing look. "I'd never ask but who are you, exactly? It almost sounds as if the Tsuchikage favors you. Or perhaps your sister."

Not really comfortable with the amount of information he was revealing, he admitted, "He's my sensei."

She gaped. "You were the Tsuchikage's student?"

"It's no big deal." He flicked her chin and her mouth snapped shut. "Who are you to talk? You're the Hokage's apprentice, yeah!"

Looking away, she said dejectedly, "Still… I doubt Shishou would forgive me. Your reason for defecting wasn't as petty as mine."

"Of course. So, come back to Iwa with me. Onoki would be more than happy to have someone with your skills on our side." He grinned. "In fact, he probably would take you in just to see the Hokage fume."

"That would be horrible for village relations," she muttered.

She obviously thought that he was joking. Sobering up, he said, "I'm serious, Sakura. Come back with me. I only received permission to leave Iwa because I told him I'm not staying put without you."

A choked sound escaped her. "Deidara… You didn't!"

Her reaction wasn't quite what he expected. Hell, what did he expect in the first place anyway? Pressing on, he said, "He gave me a month to get you. Time's almost up. Come back to Iwa and you don't have to run and hide anymore. And you would be free."

Frowning pensively, she rubbed her knees slowly. After a moment of silence, she declared, "You have no idea just how tempting that sounds."

Tempting was good. Tempting made it sound as if last night hadn't happened. Last night when she had effectively rejected him. He scowled inwardly and told himself not to over-think the situation. She probably had been a little nervous or something.

Or she simply hadn't felt like doing it with him.

Giving himself a mental shake to refocus his thoughts on the current topic, he demanded, "Then what are you waiting for, yeah? Let's head back to Iwa together."

She gave him an unhappy look. "I have to go back to Konoha. What I did was wrong and I have to answer for that as well, so I can't just run away."

Frustrated, he threw his hands up in the air. "But the contract is broken! I was there, remember?"

"This is not about the contract anymore." Sighing, she said, "I just need to do this. I need to go back."

"They might keep you locked up for who knows how long. Or worse. You're being unreasonable, Sakura."

"I'm not!" She gave him a pleading look. "Do you think I feel good defecting from my village? There were things that drove me to do it but all this time, I've always had it at the back of my mind to go back and put things right."

He tensed. As well as they'd gotten along, this was one thing that they'd never agreed on. To him, her blind loyalty to her village defied logic. And what was the point of going back when she knew that they would throw her into a cell. There was no way they would let her off without any kind of punishment. The only reason he got off so lightly was because of the deal he made with Onoki.

A little voice at the back of his head told him that he'd effectively sold himself to Iwa just to make that troubled look on his sister's face go away.

"Try to understand, Deidara," Sakura said quietly.

He inhaled slowly, and then exhaled. Meeting her eyes, he asked, "Say you go back there. What's there for you, hm? You have no future there."

Eyes downcast, she murmured, "I know, and I'm prepared to accept that."

"Is there another reason why you want to go back?"

She looked baffled. "Like what?"

He bit out, "Like that ANBU."

She tensed. "We're no longer married, and any relationship between me and Itachi at this point would be completely inappropriate and unacceptable."

"So you've _thought_ about it," he accused heatedly. Damn it, she actually still thought about that bastard in that way. Was that why she'd rejected him last night?

"You're being unreasonable, Deidara!" she snapped sharply. "Don't start blaming it on others. I know we probably won't ever see eye to eye on this topic, and I accept that. You need to accept the fact that I'm going back to Konoha, regardless of what might await me there."

"I'm being unreasonable?" he yelled with growing fury. "You're the one being stupidly loyal to your damned village when all they would do is toss you in a cell or execute you. I can't let that happen! I'll make sure it won't happen."

She jumped to her feet and stabbed his chest with a finger. "You will NOT interfere, Deidara, or so help me I'll hate you for the rest of my life!" she snarled.

He glared at her. "At least you'd be alive. You can hate me all you want."

She exhaled loudly and her shoulders slumped. "Deidara. I don't want to fight about this. It would change nothing."

Silenced descended upon them. He studied her pensive expression and wondered if he ever had a chance of convincing her. Right now, that didn't seem likely and it was pissing him off. Was he the only one who wanted them to be together? Was this just some sort of temporary fling for her? He could not believe he was actually having these thoughts but who could blame him?

"Have you ever thought about us, long-term?" he asked quietly.

She shut her eyes as if in pain, and then sighed. "I refused to."

His throat was constricted. "Why?"

"I knew I had to return to Konoha some day. I never intended to be a nukenin permanently. Konoha is my home." She gave him an almost desperate look. "I thought that I would just lay low until all the fuss had died down in Konoha, maybe after a few years, and then I go back. I didn't think that I would meet someone like you. Please don't think that this is easy for me."

"But now that you've met me, stay with me!" he yelled, hating how desperate he sounded.

"I can't! Maybe I feel guilty because I ran away. Maybe I feel as if I deserve to be punished. I don't know!" she exclaimed in frustration.

He turned away from her and raked his fingers through his hair, pulling the band loose. "I can't believe I'm hearing this."

"Deidara. Can't we just spend our time together without arguing about this?"

"There isn't much time left."

Her expression was sad and determined at the same time. "So we should treasure it."

He shut his eyes and exhaled loudly. Pain throbbed within his chest and at the same time, a hollow sensation spread. Yeah, maybe she was right. He needed to be back in Iwa in less than a week which meant that he would have to leave in a day or the latest two. Yeah, maybe they should treasure what little time they had left. But he also knew that he would find it difficult to do so. There was no way he could pretend that everything was fine and carry on as they'd done over the last few weeks.

He knew her and he knew that when she had made her mind up, she would stick to it no matter what. Therefore any further prodding from him would achieve nothing except make things more strained between them. That was the last thing he wanted, but he also knew that he wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut for long.

There really wasn't anything left for him to say, was there?

So what else was left for him to do?

000

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The night sky was dark and the stars twinkled clearly overhead as the two shinobi made their way back to the Uchiha hideout.

Some things just never changed, Naruto thought as he padded across the forest floor. Walking beside him was Sasuke wearing a brooding frown. The sound of birds chirping overhead was the only thing breaking the silence. He sighed. At least an hour had passed since they'd last spoken, and he was beginning to grow irritated.

Deciding to break the silence, he said, "Oi, Teme. You had a good talk with her?"

"Hn."

Naruto took four more steps before he commented, "I still can't believe the deal she made with Itachi."

"Hn."

Five steps later, he carried on, "I mean, what the hell? She could've stuck with her original plan and I can make sure Itachi doesn't give away anything."

"Hn."

"I don't think Itachi is unreasonable." Recalling the time he'd spoken to Itachi in the cave, he added, "And I think that your brother might have some feelings for Sakura anyway. Surely he wouldn't want to see her imprisoned. He would help us."

Silence was all he received from Sasuke.

"So?" he prompted.

Sasuke scowled but said nothing.

Irritated by his reticence, Naruto snapped, "Oi, I'm talking to you. We need to do something about her going back as a nukenin."

Giving him an impatient look, the other nin said tonelessly, "I don't think we can do anything if that's what she wants."

Naruto sagged. "She made me promise not to get involved. But she didn't make you promise anything, right. Maybe you can do something."

Sasuke's steps halted abruptly and he turned to face him. "Are you being dense? The fact is, she wants to go back with no lies surrounding her return. Try to understand that, Dobe. It's not as if you don't know what she's like."

Naruto groaned inwardly. "I guess you're right," he sighed dejectedly. "I still don't like it."

"Hn." Sasuke started to walk again before he murmured, "Neither do I."

Silence descended upon them again, but this time it didn't bother him as much. Instead, something else was nudging at his senses. It was very subtle at first, and then the disturbance grew until he couldn't ignore it.

Slowly, he turned towards the east. An uneasy feeling radiated through him then.

"What's wrong now?" Sasuke snapped.

Without answering, he activated his sage mode and felt himself merge with the environment. Staying still, he allowed his senses to roam until he saw the reason for his unease.

"Oh shit," he muttered.

"What is it, Dobe?"

Snapping out of the sage mode, a serious Naruto turned to Sasuke and said, "Make your way back to the Uchiha stronghold. I need to be somewhere else right now."

Sasuke stared at him for a moment, and then nodded. "Don't get yourself killed, Dobe."

Naruto snorted. "As if, Teme."

And in the next moment, two figures streaked in opposite directions.

000

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The night sky was streaked with an eerie network of lightning. Wherever there was a puddle on the ground, sparks skittered over the surface of the water. Considering that the entire valley was flooded by the exchange of water attacks, the number of safe spots for one to stand on was severely limited. However, leaving the valley for the high ground was not an option as that would leave the Fire fragment within the valley unprotected.

Lighting flashed again, illuminating the cracked mask across the miko's face as she continued to bombard them with water attacks which kept the valley saturated and allowing her lightning attacks to spread further. She did not seem at all affected by the deadly sparks. Worse still, even after the last few hours of battle she showed no signs of fatigue, which suggested to Itachi that the incomplete mask was somehow channeling an external source of energy. The rest of her injuries were minor. His team was not as fortunate as her. Most of them suffered some form of neuromuscular damage from her attacks, even though these were not visible externally.

With a foot on a dry root projecting from the side of the steep slope and a chakra-filled hand further up, Itachi balanced precariously as he used his free hand to form seals before he brought his fingers to his lips. A deadly stream of fire gushed from his lips straight at the miko. It collided with a wall of water she called forth just in time to block his attack. The two elements fought for supremacy but Itachi knew that it was just a matter of time before his fire was extinguished by the more dominant water attack.

But he knew of a more powerful fire technique. Should he risk it?

Then, out of the corner of his eyes a streak of black appeared and it dawned on Itachi that Neji intended to take advantage of the miko's preoccupation with the fire attack to make a move. His heart sank. It was too risky and he was about to call out when his blaze disappeared in a cloud of steam, extinguished by the miko.

Neji was still rushing straight at her.

"Pull back, Hyuuga!" Itachi ordered urgently.

But it was too late. The miko spun around and let loose one after another lightning bolts. The Hyuuga displayed a great level of agility as he leapt and ducked to avoid the bright projectiles. That was when Itachi caught sight of the grim expression on Neji's face. He knew that he was in trouble.

And then one hit. The Hyuuga's body jolted erratically as another connected with his arm and sent sparks shooting outwards.

"Neji!" Genma called out.

Clutching his limp arm, the pale and shaking Hyuuga gritted out, "I'm fine."

Itachi clenched his hands into fists in frustration. The Hyuuga's strength was close-range combat and surveillance. This battle with the miko put him at a disadvantage. He'd been unable to avoid the jolt of electrocution which had brought him to his knees, and now the miko moved to make the most of the situation. The other two members of his team were too far away to help.

Eyes narrowed, Itachi moved swiftly to intercept. The prolonged battle with Kagami had proven that his two types of elemental jutsu, fire and water, were ineffective against her. The only thing left was his kekkei genkai. There was no helping it, even if he knew that it would cost him in the long run.

His three tomoes swirled intently and he felt the power rise within him.

Closer. He needed to get closer to her.

_Look at me! _

The miko glanced at him and their eyes locked.

A dark sense of anticipation filled him as he intoned, _"Tsukuyomi." _

The world darkened to red as his technique sucked the miko in. She was suspended midair much like the stone fragments before they were retrieved, as if bound by invisible ropes. The eye not covered by the cracked mask widened in realization and then she squeezed it shut.

"Too late," his voice echoed mockingly.

Spears appeared from the darkness beyond and rushed at her. Gasps of pain escaped her lips and her body jerked each time a spear impaled her as Itachi watched impassively. None of this was real but to everyone subjected to this technique, it felt so real that it was burnt into one's consciousness for life.

Her lips moved but he could not catch the words.

Itachi frowned, not liking the possibilities of this.

Her lips continued to move, and resolve gradually filled her face and her words became distinct.

"… not enough! This isn't enough to bring me down!"

And then much to Itachi's shock, the eye framed by the cracked mask opened and locked onto his own. Itachi sucked in a sharp breath when three familiar dark marks appeared in the golden orb. This couldn't be right, he thought with equal amounts of confusion and trepidation.

There was an odd shift in the atmosphere, as if his technique was being displaced.

A blink of an eye later, reality swirled into his vision.

She broke out of the Tsukuyomi.

He stared at her in astonishment. Some distance away from him, the miko was down on her knees as she drew in one jagged breath after another. Breaking out of his technique had taken its toll on her. However, the fact remained that she _had_ broken out of a technique that one believed was unbreakable unless one possessed a certain bloodline.

"How?" he asked simply.

She raised her eyes, and then smirked. "How did you think the mask was created?"

He waited as she laughed smugly.

Her hand went up to tap the mask and she continued, "Uchiha Madara was responsible for the creation of this mask. Therefore is it so surprising that it contains some of Madara's strengths?"

Madara? That person shared the same Uchiha blood and therefore had the power to break free of Tsukuyomi. Did this mean that the miko would be able to dispel Amaterasu as well? Itachi felt his blood run cold. Furthermore, if Madara was involved there was no telling what else the mask was capable of. And if the mask was this powerful when it was incomplete, its power would be unfathomable when it was whole.

He needed to act now to bring her down while she was relatively weakened. Once again, he called forth his chakra reserves. This time the strain it imposed on his body could not be missed. He knew that he would pay for this later with permanent damage to his eyes but he could not think of any other way.

However, before he could unleash anything a blast chakra shot through the valley and stilled his actions. It was a chakra signature he recognized well, and at this precise moment it was a presence he more than welcomed. Keeping his attention on the surprised miko, Itachi darted a quick glance in the direction where the chakra was coming from.

Uzumaki Naruto.

A wash of relief flooded through him at the approach of the blond jinchuuriki. Naruto was flash-stepping and the next thing Itachi knew, the younger nin was standing next to him. They might be able to win against the miko as they were but it would probably be drawn out longer than Itachi was comfortable with. With Naruto lending his strength, this would be a more efficient battle.

"Naruto," he greeted. "Your presence is much appreciated."

The corner of his eyes crinkling, the blond returned, "Didn't want to miss it. Seems like it would be a good fight."

Itachi's lips twitched. "Aa. Just remember that the mask gives her the ability to manipulate water and lightning."

Naruto shrugged. "Elemental stuff isn't my thing, anyway."

"You!" The miko's golden eyes widened with realization. "You're the demon."

Naruto gave her an offended look. "Hey, don't call me that. That's not nice. I'm _me_, Uzumaki Naruto. Not a demon."

"Naruto!" Genma called out as he sped towards them.

The blond acknowledged the older shinobi with a nod and then his eyes landed on Neji. Where he wasn't covered by his dark ANBU uniform, Neji's skin was paler than usual. He did not move as Tenzou tended to his injuries. His breaths were uneven and he suffered intermittent spasms.

"He's a mess, isn't he?" Naruto commented casually but this time there was a flare of something dangerous in his eyes as he stared at the miko.

Kagami gave the injured nin a dismissive look. "Maybe this would teach him not to meddle in other's affairs."

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Aa… I see. But I'm afraid I'd have to start meddling as well. I can't just leave things like this, can I?"

Eyes narrowing, the miko sneered, "If you think you can do better than them, then you're mistaken."

Grinning, Naruto brought his hands together and before he activated his jutsu, he glanced sideways and murmured quietly, "I'll distract her. I'm counting on you to finish her off."

Itachi was surprised but before he could display any outward reaction, what seemed like hundreds of Naruto's bunshin appeared. They charged as one, converging on the miko. Understanding Naruto's intent, Itachi studied the situation intently with the goal of finding an opening to attack.

Predictably, as Naruto's shadow clones reached her they popped out of existence one after another. The miko laughed mockingly as the last one disintegrated.

"That's all you're capable of?" she said.

Without answering, Naruto released another wave of shadow clones. This time, Itachi created one as well and sent it into the fray together with the many orange and black figures. His clone sped toward the miko and only had time to catch the sight of the miko raising her arms and sending what seemed like invisible pulses outwards before it was destroyed.

And so it went on. Itachi noted that her attacks appeared to work only at close range when there were a large number of opponents. When there were fewer targets, the range was greater. Naruto seemed to have a countless supply of shadow clones and Itachi spotted that there was a time lag between the miko's attacks. In fact, he was certain that Kagami was finally beginning to get exhausted. All he had to do now was to make a move before the miko re-charged. His elemental jutsu was ineffective against her therefore he would have to go back to the basics.

"We're getting there, hopefully," Naruto muttered darkly. "Otherwise we would need a change of plans. You might not believe it but I don't have a bottomless pit of chakra."

"Aa."

An opportunity finally presented itself when he saw the miko falter briefly after extinguishing yet another wave of Naruto's clones. Itachi streaked forward with the next group of clones. He maintained a safe distance behind, hidden by the crowd which was being dispelled one after another.

And then he was there.

The miko's eyes flashed in realization just a moment before he struck out with his kunai. Flesh tore as the blade sliced through her left side, unfortunately missing her heart. He had hoped to end this with one strike but it seemed that things wouldn't be so simple.

And that was as long as it took for the miko to recoup her energy. There was a purple flash and then a pressure built swiftly around him and the next thing Itachi knew, he was thrown across the clearing.

He landed on a surprisingly pliant surface and pop followed before he hit the ground. It looked like one of Naruto's clones had cushioned his fall. Unharmed apart from the injuries he'd received earlier, he rose to his feet and rejoined Naruto, who was releasing an almost constant stream of clones.

"This is the last lot," Naruto said grimly.

"I'll make another attempt," Itachi announced.

Naruto nodded. "If this fails, I'm going into Sage mode."

It would not fail, Itachi decided as he created a shadow clone to join the next attack. The dark figure of his clone stood out starkly against the brightness of Naruto's. And as he'd expected, Kagami dealt swiftly with the clones.

Learning from the previous attack, Itachi activated a transportation jutsu the moment the miko reached out to destroy his clone.

He appeared in front of her just a fraction of a second after his clone burst into smoke.

And drove his kunai straight into the miko's heart.

Her wide eyes stared at him in bewilderment, as if she couldn't comprehend what had just happened. Itachi felt the pressure dragging down on his kunai and then she dropped to her knees. Viscous red blood coated his weapon as it slid out of her.

Naruto appeared beside him just as Kagami expelled her final breath.

"It never feels good, does it?" the younger nin muttered in a subdued tone.

Itachi sighed inwardly. He agreed with Naruto but keeping someone so dangerous live wasn't an option.

Genma joined them a few seconds later and stared down grimly at the miko. "I didn't realize just how dangerous the fragments are."

Reaching down, Itachi picked up the incomplete mask. Even in this unfinished state, it emanated a sinister aura. But then again, was that so surprising? Madara had a hand in its creation after all. Sometime it was hard to believe that they were related. Itachi couldn't understand why the man made the decisions he had. Madara's aim had always been self-serving one way or another.

"Ne, what do we do with that now?"

He glanced up to find Naruto frowning at the mask. "We separate the fragments." His eyes went to the Fire fragment which was still suspended midair. "And retrieve this last one."

If one could utilize the power without combining all five fragments, then perhaps destroying them would be the best course of action.

Naruto nodded, and then looked at the unconscious Neji and the worried Tenzou some distance away. "You guys head back to Konoha. I'll take Neji."

Itachi frowned. "Why?"

"I can get him help faster than you can."

Aa. "In that case, we are counting on you," he told Naruto gratefully.

Waving as he flashed towards his injured comrade, Naruto called over his shoulder, "Just get back to Konoha in one piece, will you? I'll see you."

Once he was out of sight, Genma commented, "That boy will be our Hokage one day. Can you believe it?"

"Aa."

And when that happened, Itachi knew that he would proudly serve the young leader. With someone like that at the helm, Konoha would enter a new age. Perhaps with that, the selfish attitude that infected some of the clans would be eradicated and people would get along better. He could not imagine Naruto allowing any kind of strife to perpetuate.

But that was still years to come. Right now, he had a more pressing issue to resolve, and later someone to fetch.

"Let's extract the fragment," he said.

Joining them, Tenzou inclined his head at the body nearby. "I'm ready with the extraction seals. But what do we do with her?"

"Someone like her has to be brought back to Konoha for inspection."

Genma nodded in agreement. "Fine. Now that it's settled, let's finish retrieving the fragment. I want to head home sooner rather than later," he declared. "My whole body is still aching from that fight earlier."

Tenzou rubbed his right side. "I got hit here and it still feels wrong. Hopefully the medics would be able to do something about it."

Itachi brought his hands together and braced himself to commence the procedure. He could not wait for this to be over. Tenzou's comment about medics only brought forth thoughts of Sakura and the fact that he would soon be returning her to Konoha. How would she react to seeing him after the formal dissolution of their bond? Had she spent any time thinking about him? Was it anywhere close to the way she seemed to be constantly on his mind?

It was then that it occurred to Itachi that for the first time, he was spending as much time focusing on the personal aspect as well as the professional aspect of his life.

And it was all because of a woman he'd foolishly let go.

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A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that. Please review!

:elle6778:


	21. Chapter 20

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

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><p><strong><span>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 20<span>**

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The early morning sunshine streamed through the window straight into her face. Blinking the sleep from her eyes, Sakura sat up slowly and stared out into the bright morning. Even without turning to the side, she could sense the emptiness beside her.

A sad smile crossed her lips. Somehow it felt like all life had leached out of her and the idea of getting out of bed was completely unacceptable. She wanted to just lay there for the rest of the day, or maybe the week. Or even the year.

And it was all because of Deidara.

She understood why he had left. Iwa had given him a certain time frame to bring her back with him and if she guessed correctly, time had run out. It was not as if she had given him any hope, had she? She had flat out rejected him, she thought with a squeeze of her heart. Had she made the wrong choice? Was she too forceful in her insistence that she had to return to Konoha? She didn't know what was right or what was wrong anymore.

All she knew was that last night they had gone to bed together.

And she now woke up alone.

When was the last time she'd felt so lonely? Just how strong was her bond to Deidara? As strong as it was, it was still not enough for her to pick him over Konoha. She was the worst sort of person, wasn't she? His feelings were so sincere, so strong and yet she rejected him.

Exhaling loudly, she curled up. Her chest hurt as badly as it'd hurt when she realized that she meant nothing to Itachi. So what did that signify? That she loved Deidara as much as she loved Itachi before? But then again, lately she'd been questioning if what she felt for Itachi was romantic love at all, seeing that she barely knew him. Did this mean that what she felt for Deidara wasn't a kind of romantic love but something else? Had she always seen him as a very close friend only? Was that why she couldn't take the final step in their relationship? Surely if she was in love with him, she would choose to do anything to stay together with him.

The jumbled thoughts in her head were driving her crazy. She hated feeling like this. She hated feeling as if she'd betrayed everyone around her because of her own choices. From an outsider's point of view, she'd basically led Deidara on and rejected him when it came down to the crunch. Just what sort of a person would do such a thing?

At this moment in time, she decided that she didn't like herself very much. It was just as well that when she got back to Konoha, she would be punished for defecting. In her current state, punishment was more appealing than anything else. She felt as if she _should _be punished. She deserved to be punished.

But did that make things right at all? None of that changed the fact that she had hurt Deidara with her rejection.

Heat rose behind her closed lids and her heart stung as tears began to flow out of the corner of her eyes. Her shoulders shook uncontrollably as she began to sob for the loss that she brought unto herself.

"Deidara…" she whispered brokenly.

And then she tensed suddenly. The flaring of familiar chakra signatures caught her attention and she jackknifed out of bed instantly. Her clothes went on hurriedly as she dashed to the door, dashing the dampness from her face.

She yanked it open to see an unconscious Hyuuga Neji slung over Naruto's shoulder.

"Naruto! What happened?" she gushed out. "Come in."

"Long story. They were fighting some crazy miko and he took a lot of hits," Naruto explained as he carried Neji through the small hut to her bed and lowered him.

"Wait! They?" she asked as she began to scan Neji's injuries. And by miko did Naruto mean Kagami?

"Itachi's ANBU squad," Naruto said with a worried frown. "Their mission involves finding some lost fragments."

Her eyes shot up in realization. The fragments! Did that mean... "What about-"

"The rest of the squad is injured but not as bad as Neji. When I left, they were wrapping up their mission. I brought him with me because he seems to be in a bad state and you're the nearest medic," he explained, clearly frustrated. "Is he going to be alright?"

Sakura frowned in concentration. She hadn't seen Neji for years and he seemed to be keeping well aside from these recent injuries. "He has sustained some neuromuscular wound. From lightning burns if I'm not mistaken. I will try my best to fix everything." A pause followed before she asked, "The miko?"

Naruto looked grim. "Gone. Her power was something else, but we got rid of her finally."

She exhaled in relief as her hands began to glow. "That's good."

"Those fragments are dangerous. We need to get rid of them," Naruto grumbled. "Hopefully that's the last we hear of Madara and his crazy stunts."

She nodded and concentrated on repairing the damage inflicted on Neji.

"Oi, where's Deidara? I don't sense him nearby."

She kept her attention on Neji, even though Naruto's words brought a sudden sting to her eyes. Her tone was admirably calm when she announced, "He's gone."

"Gone?" Sounding completely confused, he asked, "What do you mean, gone?" At her silence, his voice gentled, "Sakura-chan? You don't mean he left you, do you?"

The stinging in her eyes morphed into actual hot tears and she felt one spill out of the corner of her eyes. This was so embarrassing, she thought with a choked sob as she continued to insert healing chakra into Neji's injuries. She hadn't had the time to fully process everything and sort things out in her head before Naruto appeared, and this was the result.

There was a shuffling sound and then she felt Naruto's arm snaking around her waist to hug her from the back. His warmth was reassuring but she felt as if she did not deserve the comfort.

"Don't cry, Sakura-chan."

She nodded, valiantly trying to stem her tears. "I'm alright, really." And knowing that Naruto would like some answers, she continued shakily, "H-he asked me to go back to Iwa with him and I said no. So he doesn't have a reason to stay."

Naruto sucked in a sharp breath and the arms around her shoulders tightened. "He left just like that?"

"He wasn't here when I woke up. I don't blame him, though. I just don't know if I made the right decision," she whispered. "I have to return to Konoha, whatever it is. Leaving Konoha was not meant to be permanent. Maybe it was just impossible for me and Deidara to be together in the first place."

"Maybe," Naruto muttered consolingly as he stepped around to face her. After a long pause, he continued, "But hey, it was good while it lasted, right? You wouldn't trade the time you've spent with him for anything else. He made these years good for you, right? He probably feels the same. It's just tough that you can't find a way to be together."

His words struck a chord, and an odd sense of acceptance settled over her.

"Say, you will probably feel like this for a while, Sakura-chan. But you shouldn't really blame yourself for it. Things like this can happen."

She nodded slowly.

"Anyway, he didn't go without a word. I think he left a little something for you."

Shock made the chakra in her hand sputter to a stop before she caught herself and regained control. She made sure that her healing energy was still directed to the right places before she glanced up to give Naruto a questioning look.

"What do you mean?"

He reached into his pouch and withdrew a small clay bird. "I found this just outside the door. I figured it was one of Deidara's spies but if he'd left this place…" he trailed off into silence.

She observed with mixed feelings as the bird fluttered its white wings and jumped onto the window sill nearby. Her hands continued to channel chakra into her patient without interruption as the bird regarded her intently. Knowing that she had to finish her task, she carried on until she was sure that Neji's condition was no longer critical before she withdrew her hands.

"Why is it just staring at you like that?" Naruto asked, breaking the silence.

She reached out one hand to the bird, and to her surprise it leapt onto her palm.

"Sakura," it greeted in Deidara's voice.

Sakura gasped and almost dropped the bird. "D-Deidara?" Could this really be him?

Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "I guess I should head outside to make sure we're secure."

Understanding that he was giving her a little privacy, she nodded and watched as he left the hut. When the door clicked shut behind him, she turned back to the bird. It flapped its wings briefly before settling down. And then it continued to talk.

"This jutsu is sort of like a recording, yeah. I can't really respond to anything you say but as long as you keep looking at me, I'll carry on until this message is over. So for once you're just going to sit there like a good little girl and hear me out. It's pointless to argue with a clay bird."

She blinked and she felt a wobbly smile appear on her lips. His voice… His voice was like a balm to that feeling of loss that she'd been experiencing ever since she realized that he'd left.

"Firstly," the bird said in his voice. "You need to stop beating yourself up, yeah. You've probably been doing that ever since you found me gone. Just stop it, because that's stupid. Besides, it's not going to change a thing."

Sakura raised a hand to wipe away the remnant of her tears as she continued to listen.

"I get why you said those things last night. I don't agree with your ideas, but I know it's pointless to force you to see things my way. And if I stayed, that's exactly what I'd do and we would end up yelling at each other. So I thought I should leave before I say something I shouldn't and hurt that girly heart of yours, yeah. Don't get me wrong. Leaving you doesn't mean that I feel any less for you."

Uncertainty tinged his voice when he said, "Much as I hate to say this, I know there's always a chance that we might not end up the way I want us to. Probably because you can't seem to give up on that stupid village of yours. I know, I know… I shouldn't say a bad thing about your precious village. You're far too attached to it. But I don't care about that as long as I know…" A pause followed, and then, "Tsk… Never mind. All I'm trying to say is that this isn't the last time you would be hearing from me."

His voice grew more forceful as he continued, "Wherever you are in Konoha, I'd find you. Even if you're in some high-security cell specially made for traitorous nukenins, I will be there. I know you don't want to be rescued, so I'm going to try to respect that. I just want to see you. Right now, I have no idea how I'm going to do it but trust me when I say that I will figure something out. It will take some time but it will happen, yeah. In the meantime, I would have to keep the old man and Onee-chan happy so that I don't end up in my own stinky cell in Iwa. I don't know about Konoha but Iwa's prison food is really not fit for any living things."

Her lips curved into a smile.

"So, Sakura. This is not a goodbye, yeah. This is just an update to let you know I'm alive so that you don't worry. Because I know that you care. And please… stop crying before you make yourself look as ugly as an old hag. If you want to cry, cry in front of me so that I can laugh at you, yeah."

A bubble of laughter burst from her lips.

"Deidara… you idiot…" she murmured just as the bird burst into a cloud and disappeared.

For a long time, she simply stared at the spot where the bird had been standing just minutes ago. His words were all she needed to hear. She felt a hundred times better. The situation hadn't changed a bit, but the message from Deidara was all she required to lift the depression.

"Thank you, Deidara…"

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"So, where's that girl you were going to bring back?"

Standing in the old man's office, Deidara scowled at the small figure of the Tsuchikage and muttered, "That didn't work out, yeah."

Onoki snorted. "So she's smart enough not to tie herself to you, huh?"

Deidara felt a blood vessel pop, but at the same time there was a constriction in his chest. "It's nothing like that! Anyway, all that doesn't matter anymore."

"Stop sulking then."

"I'm NOT sulking, yeah!"

"Oh? Sure looks like it from here," Onoki pointed out with a sadistic gleam in his eyes. Turning to the side, the old man asked, "Don't you think so, Kurotsuchi? The boy's definitely sulking, isn't he?"

The dark-haired kunoichi gave him an odd look. "He probably got his heart broken for the first time." And under her breath, but not so quietly that Deidara couldn't hear it, she added, "About time too…"

He strode up right to her and gritted out in her face, "Just what is that supposed to mean, yeah?"

She was undaunted, completely unlike the little adoring girl he had known back before he left Iwa. Crossing her arms over her chest, she raised a brow and said, "Back then, you have quite an awful reputation with girls. I could never understand why any of them bothered to go near you. I'm just thinking that maybe you deserve what you got. This Sakura girl obviously didn't think that you're worth it."

"Why you!" he snarled as his hands snapped out with the intent to strangle her.

Only to have his wrists restrained by one of Onoki's frustratingly effective jutsu.

"Behave," Onoki snapped. "Tsk! I didn't let you stay so that you could create chaos in Iwa. We have a deal, or have you forgotten already?"

"What kind of a deal was that? You left me with no choice!"

"You have a choice. You could've just accepted the punishment and stay in a cell like a good repentant boy. Or is that too hard a life for you?" Kurotsuchi taunted. "Can't take a little hardship, you spoilt little prince?"

Onoki waved her away. "Be quiet." Turning back to Deidara, he said, "Look, you want your freedom. Like everything else in this world, it comes with a price."

"I could just defect again," Deidara announced furiously.

"You could," Onoki said dismissively. "But before you do that, think of how your Onee-chan would feel."

Deidara winced. He could never say no to his sister, who had practically brought him up. She was the only one who accepted everything that he was. Well, she _had been_ the only one. Sakura did too, but look at where they stood now.

"Fine. I'm here now, am I not? What else do you want?" Deidara retorted grumpily.

Onoki's eyes narrowed. "You need an attitude adjustment, boy. That's the first in a long line of lessons. And then you need to learn how to be a responsible Iwa nin."

Deidara bit back a groan. With some difficultly, he forced out, "I got it, yeah."

The old man snorted again. "Now, report to the Personnel department. They'll assign you a place to live."

"What happened to my old place?"

Kurotsuchi raised a brow. "Why would anyone keep that place for you for so many years? It's occupied now."

Deidara felt his heart sank. He'd expected to move back to his spacious top floor studio with the huge rooflights. The lighting was perfect for his art. Now he would probably end up in one of those basement units with the dim artificial lights. Would nothing go right these days?

"Who's living there now?" he asked. Maybe he could ask them to trade places with him.

Kurotsuchi gave him a smug look. "Me."

"You!" He glared at her. "Why don't you give it back to me and go home to stay with the old man? You don't _need_ a studio when you have the Tsuchikage's mansion and its grounds!"

"That's enough, both of you!" Onoki snapped. "Kurotsuchi, I'm sure you have paperwork to do. Deidara, get yourself settled and then report back here first thing tomorrow morning."

Biting back his retort, Deidara nodded curtly and walked towards the door. Right before he left, he darted a murderous look at Kurotsuchi. Just wait, one day he would snatch that studio back from her.

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It had taken one long week before Itachi managed to excuse himself from Konoha to retrieve Sasuke. Somehow, a certain blond jinchuuriki had realized his intent and had decided to accompany him, much to Itachi's bemusement. His confusion turned into incredulity when he'd been informed by a very smug Sasuke that his defenses of the compound had been easily cracked by none other than the loudest ninja in Konoha. He would find out later how such a thing had been achieved.

At the moment, his entire focus was pinned on finding Sakura. Too much time had passed since he'd last seen her. Even though they had parted with him being left in no doubt that she was no longer wanted him, he still foolishly yearned after her. He couldn't help but wish that two years ago he'd known what he knew now. Perhaps they could have been happy together. But it seemed that fate had a morbid sense of humor.

With her imminent return to Konoha, he found himself thinking of the possibility of them beginning anew. Whatever her sentence was, he knew that it was unlikely to span her lifetime. Tsunade would not keep someone as skilled as Sakura in confinement forever. She would be released at some point, and when that happened Itachi knew that he wanted to be someone important to her. Their first attempt at a relationship had ended in failure but that did not mean that he could not try again. He only hoped that she would be receptive to his advances.

"Aniki, where are we going?"

Sasuke's words broke him out of his internal thoughts. He glanced back to find his brother walking beside Naruto with a healthy arm's length between them. Considering how they treated each other sometimes, it was difficult to believe that they were the best of friends.

"To find Haruno Sakura," Itachi said and then stopped.

Stopping, he began to expand his senses in the attempt to locate the general direction of Deidara. It would be easier to find Sakura through him as long as the blond still carried that clay pouch.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked.

Itachi frowned as the tiny pinprick of information reached him from an unexpected direction. "Locating a certain Iwa nin."

"If you're talking about Deidara, he's probably in Iwa now," Naruto supplied.

Itachi tensed. "In Iwa? Is Sakura with him?"

Smiling sheepishly, Naruto admitted, "Oops, I probably forgot to tell anyone that I brought Neji to Sakura before I returned him to Konoha. And he promised to keep quiet." And then he shrugged. "I guess it doesn't really matter now, though."

Itachi tamped down the urge to shake the younger nin. "What doesn't matter? How do you know he is in Iwa?"

"Dobe, what do you know?" Sasuke interjected with a frown.

"I'm only guessing that Deidara is back in Iwa now. Sakura told me that before he left, he asked her to go to live in Iwa with him."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "What?"

Itachi felt as if a bucket of icy water had just washed over him. "And her response?"

Naruto gave him a knowing look. "What do you think?"

Itachi averted his eyes. Had she truly chosen to discard her ties to Konoha and align herself with Iwa? Did he really have to go to Iwa and force her to return? Would he have to lay eyes on her hurt and sorrowful expression when he tore her away from the man she'd chosen to be with?

"You can't be serious! Sakura's in Iwa with that bastard?" Sasuke snapped irritably.

"It's not quite like that." Naruto darted a meaningful look at Itachi and went on, "She refused. She chose Konoha."

Itachi felt his breath stall. Refused? Slowly, he turned back to face the blond. Naruto's words were clear enough that he did not need to ask the younger nin to repeat them. Her choice meant that she was fully prepared to fulfill her part of their bargain even without the threat of the contract. What did that mean?

"Good thing she hadn't lost her mind," Sasuke commented tartly.

Naruto shrugged. "I don't know about that. Sometimes I think maybe her decision isn't such a good one."

"Which decision isn't?" Itachi asked.

"Returning to Konoha. I mean, Baa-chan would be glad to see Sakura, but she would know that Sakura had lied her way out of the village for two years." Naruto shook his head. "Baa-chan probably would pardon Sasuke because he didn't choose to become a missing nin, but Sakura's case is completely different. Even if Tsunade wants to pardon Sakura, she couldn't."

"The fault lies with me," Itachi told the blond. "I will explain the situation to the Hokage."

"Heh, you could try. She might be mad enough to throw you in a cell as well," Naruto chuckled. And then sobering up, he added, "Sometimes I think that maybe Sakura should have gone with Deidara."

Something harsh and violent welled up within Itachi and he ground out, "No."

"No?" Naruto raised a brow. "That tone of yours sounds awfully personal."

Sasuke grunted and then looked away, while Itachi narrowed his eyes at the impertinent blond nin. "Perhaps it is," he finally said.

Naruto chuckled. "Fine, fine. I won't harass you about it anymore. Let's go. I'll lead you to Sakura."

It took them another half a day of travel before they reached their destination. The forest was dense but as Naruto led them forward, Itachi began to make out the shape of some form of lodging a distance away. When they came closer, he realized that it was a run-down hut.

They were only about twenty paces away when the door to the hut swung open to reveal Sakura. Itachi felt his pulse jump in elation and he immediately berated himself for it. He was behaving like a love-sick teenage boy and it was shaming.

A smile was on her lips as she rushed out to fling herself at Naruto. To his dismay, Itachi felt an unwanted jab of envy, and perhaps some jealousy.

"Naruto!" Pulling back, she gave Sasuke a smile. "Sasuke." And then she directed a more uncertain smile at him and greeted, "Itachi."

Sasuke nodded a greeting while Naruto cried out, "You look thinner! What have you been doing to yourself in the last one week?"

Itachi studied the hollows in her cheeks. "Naruto is right. What happened?"

Her smile turned a little forced and she shrugged. "Nothing much. Maybe I'm just a little worried about going back to Konoha." She looked at him. "Don't worry. I still plan on returning."

Itachi tensed. Did she think of him as an unfeeling monster? He didn't enquire just because he wanted to know if she'd changed her mind. This merely highlighted just how little she knew him. But that was exactly it, wasn't it? She hardly knew him at all.

Well, he would have to ensure that he remedied the situation.

"Have you packed up your stuff?" Naruto asked.

She glanced back at the hut. "I don't have much, so it shouldn't take long. Come in and take a break while I clear up. I'll heat some water up for tea."

She walked ahead, leaving them to follow.

"I shouldn't have left her alone," Naruto muttered.

Itachi glanced at him, while Sasuke asked, "Why?"

"Deidara leaving hit her harder than I thought."

Itachi felt his chest tighten uncomfortably. "He left a week ago." And she stilled missed him.

Naruto nodded somberly. "She gets very attached to people." And in a quieter voice, he added, "We all do."

"She'll get over it sooner or later," Sasuke said gruffly. "In the meantime, we shouldn't fuss about it."

"Yeah, I know," Naruto said as he walked into the hut.

Itachi sat down together with the other two men and reached out for the tea Sakura had just prepared. Out of the periphery of his vision, he could see her tidying the hut with a thoughtful expression on her face. It did not take much to guess why. She was clearly bemoaning her separation with the missing nin. The entire notion irked him but he knew that he did not have a right to interfere.

Still, would he ever have a chance with her?

000

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Sakura stood rooted to the spot as the gates of Konoha loomed ahead. With an elated shout, Naruto dashed forward dragging Sasuke along. Her hands went to her chest and stayed there as she continued to stare. She missed this place. There was a sense of rightness as she stood here. Despite her feelings over the situation with Deidara and the fact that she would be imprisoned soon after this, her decision to come back was clearly the right one.

"Sakura?"

Itachi's voice pulled her from her thoughts and she turned to face him. The urge to look away from his penetrating gaze was strong but she gave him a smile instead. She had spent the entire journey avoiding direct contact with him. Still raw from her feelings for Deidara, she wasn't really prepared to confront the other painful part of her personal life. Their formal separation had struck her hard and she found it difficult to face Itachi even now. Not that he was afflicted by the same dilemma, of course. Itachi didn't seem any different from his usual stoic self. Strangely enough, she sort of wished that he displayed the forwardness he'd shown her back when he was trying to win her over. But she guessed it was too late for that now.

Realizing that she'd been silent for too long, she spoke up. "I'm just thinking that I miss Konoha."

Something in his eyes softened. "That's not a bad thing."

A wry smile twisted her lips. "Yeah, especially since from today I would be staying here in Konoha for years without stepping a single foot outside its gates."

"Think of it as a welcome respite from your travels," he suggested evenly.

A chuckle escaped her lips. "That would help, I guess."

Their eyes locked for a moment, and Sakura felt a twinge of something. However, before she could put a name to it, Itachi gestured to the gates.

"It's best that we move on now."

Nodding, she followed as he went through the gates. The guards on each side of the opening stared at her in undisguised incredulity as she went along with Itachi.

And that was just the beginning.

As she walked further into the village, more of its occupants stopped what they were doing to stare at her. There was no doubt that they recognized her especially now with inches of her pink hair emerging and her eyes back to their usual green. She felt tense all over, like a taut string which was about to snap. Hushed and not-so-hushed voices whispered of her presence and she tried to not listen to a single word. As ridiculous as it was, she was reminded of how she'd become the topic of people's gossip in the past and it made her temper flare. She hated how it had affected her then, but today she would not back away like she'd done in the past.

With that thought, her steps stilled.

Stillness fell over the crowd.

Wordlessly, Sakura turned around and caught as many eyes as she could. She kept her emotions under wraps, displaying nothing but a hard expression as she forced them to awkwardly lower their gazes. One by one, they began to hurry away. It was perhaps a little harsh, but she wasn't about to be let herself be stepped on without doing something about it. She had walked back into Konoha proudly, and she would serve the sentence for her crime with dignity.

When the last of the people had left, she turned to continue walking to the Hokage Tower with Itachi beside her.

"That was effective."

She glanced out of the corner of her eyes. "I wouldn't know about that. I only gave them more fodder for gossip."

"You cannot stop people from talking, but they now know that you won't simply take it quietly."

There was truth in his words. If she'd done that before, maybe things could've turned out differently. Still, it was a moot point. Now, she had more important things to worry about.

Namely her shishou, Sakura thought as she stood in front of the door to the Hokage's office. She clenched and unclenched her hands nervously as Itachi knocked and waited to be called in. Tsunade's voice sounded a moment later, and he pushed the door open and nudged her in.

Tsunade was there just a few paces away while Naruto and Sasuke were standing against the side walls. Sakura heard the door click shut and Itachi reporting that she'd been located as a nukenin, but she found herself unable to look away from her mentor. Tsunade looked as she'd always done; ageless. But the moist glimmer in her eyes could not be disguised and Sakura felt a lump constricting her throat.

Bowing low, Sakura murmured, "Hokage-sama."

There was a long silence before the older woman spoke. "Raise your head and come here."

Sakura felt a stab of trepidation at the harshness of the command. Straightening, she stepped forward until she was a mere arm's length away from Tsunade.

In a blinding flash of speed, Tsunade's fist connected her jaw and Sakura found herself on the floor with the left side of her face throbbing in pain while the rest of those in the room gasped.

"Baa-chan! What the hell did you do that for?" Naruto cried out in dismay.

"Quiet, you brat!" Spinning towards Itachi, Tsunade snapped, "What is the meaning of this, Uchiha? This was the nukenin you said you've spotted last week? You brought back _this_ nukenin? She's supposed to be _dead!_"

Wincing at the pain, Sakura stood up slowly and said, "I'm sorry, Shishou-"

"Who are you calling Shishou?" Tsunade barked. "I don't recall training anyone up to defect and lie to me."

Sakura grimaced. "Hokage-sama. The fault is all mine. No one else is involved. Uchiha Itachi just came across me by chance, and persuaded me that it's best for me to turn myself in."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes at her. "What a nice story." She turned to the rest of them, "Uchiha, throw your wayward brother into a holding cell until further notice. And Uzumaki, don't come back here until I call for you."

"But-"

"Go NOW!"

Sakura kept her eyes glued to her toes as the three shinobi filed out of the office to leave her and a dangerously furious Godaime alone. Alright, she should have expected something like this from Tsunade. Now all she had to do was to wait to be tossed around the office like a rag doll.

A long silence followed.

And then, "You're alive all this time."

She risked an upwards glance, only to find Tsunade staring at her stonily. In a subdued voice, she replied, "Yes. But it's not out of any disloyalty to the village. I love Konoha."

"Do you?"

Sakura nodded.

"I suppose this is all because of that Uchiha."

She was about to nod again, but instead she shook her head. "No. I was too weak. I should have stayed instead of choosing to run away and hide."

Tsunade grunted.

"I'm really sorry, Tsunade-sama."

A long silence followed, and Sakura felt her heart sink. It was terrible to know that Tsunade felt betrayed to this extent and would probably never forgive her. She deserved this, of course, she thought mournfully. But that only served to make her feel worse.

Amidst her dejected thoughts, she barely noticed Tsunade's approach.

When she looked up, her eyes caught the other woman's misty honey gaze.

And when Tsunade enveloped her in a hug, she gasped. A second later, tears of relief and joy spilled from her eyes.

The word that came to her mind right then was… home.

000

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A/N: Please review! Thanks! One more to go and that's it!

:elle6778:


	22. Chapter 21

…

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

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><p><strong><span>The Truth behind the Mask by elle6778 – Chapter 21<span>**

It was a small space but one she had grown accustomed to. Most days it was silent, but sometimes there were noises she preferred not to hear. At those times, she wished she could block everything out, but it was impossible. Sighing, she turned over. The mattress was hard under her but she was used to it by now.

"Ne, Deidara. Don't you have anything better to do?" she asked as she propped herself up on an elbow.

"Why are you complaining, yeah?"

"Tsk! You know that's not what I mean," she grouched as she laid back fully to stare at the stone ceiling.

"I just feel sorry for you, yeah. And if you prefer not to hear from me, then feel free to say so and I'll go back to doing my own stuff."

She snorted. "You know I won't tell you something like that." A smile graced her lips. "You're risking a lot. And for nothing."

"Tell me about it, yeah," he grumbled. "I feel stupid coming here like this."

"Don't," she admonished gently. "I love talking to you, and you know that."

"Don't make it sound as if you're lonely and need my company. It's not as if you don't have half of Konoha visiting you every day."

Her smile turned into a grin and she flipped herself up into a sitting position to face her visitor. Sat at the corner of a stone ledge was a tiny white clay mouse up on its haunches, staring at her with its whiskers twitching indignantly. A few months into the course of her sentence, Deidara had managed to get the first of these tiny clay constructs into her cell. It baffled her that her ANBU guard was actually letting this slide.

Speaking of ANBU guards, she thought as she glanced towards at the figure standing beyond the thick chakra-enhanced bars separating her cell from the corridor outside, she still couldn't get over the allocation of personnel. What the hell was Tsunade thinking when she assigned _him_ as one of her guards? He was vastly over-qualified for such a job.

"Him again, huh?" came Deidara's comment, laced with disgust. "I still don't know what you see in him."

The figure outside the cell tensed visibly.

Knowing what was coming, Sakura rolled her eyes. This scene was getting a little old after two years of repetition.

Sure enough, Deidara continued, "Heh, now the high and mighty is only a prison guard. Not a very good one at it, since I'm right here and all. He's a complete waste of space."

Without turning around, the 'waste of space' remarked, "Then perhaps you should remove yourself before I raise the alarm."

She didn't think such an action was possible, but the clay mouse smirked confidently. Its little clay eyes narrowed, it said, "You'll have no evidence. By the time anyone gets into this cell, I would be gone without a trace. There isn't enough of my chakra locked in here for you to implicate me, and you know that."

"Do not be overly complacent, nukenin. There's always a way," the ANBU returned smoothly.

"Nukenin? Hardly!" A snort followed before Deidara added, "I'm way above you in rank, yeah, little ANBU guard. Demoted from a captain to a guard, hm? How sad."

Itachi's brows furrowed ever so slightly. "Your information is flawed. I wasn't demoted. It was a voluntary transfer. Still, your ranking means nothing, as there is no formal confirmation of your supposed status as the Tsuchikage's successor. Perhaps it's only your imagination."

The mouse jumped off the ledge and skittered furiously across the prison floor. "Why you bastard. You-"

"Stop, Deidara!" she interjected. "Or you'll be squashed under his feet and have to come back another day."

The mouse stopped short of the metal bars and glared at the ANBU. Slowly, said ANBU turned around to fix a pair of onyx eyes on the diminutive clay construct. Sakura almost groaned out loud at the unmistakable challenge which sparked between the two of them.

"Pity," Itachi murmured.

"Come on, you two. Can't you just get a long for a while? It's not like all this bickering achieves anything," she said.

"I believe it provides entertainment for you," Itachi told her.

Their eyes met then, and she smiled. Any discomfort she had with Itachi had dissipated in the last two years he had kept her company when the others hadn't been around. She's been stunned when he'd appeared for the first time about a couple of months after the day she was shown into the cell. Until now, she could remember every word they had exchanged then.

_She was seated crosslegged on the futon reading a thick medical book Naruto had brought her last week before he'd left on his month-long mission when footsteps sounded outside. Stripped of her chakra and all shinobi abilities, she could not tell who it was. Her usual night ANBU guard turned in the direction of the footsteps and nodded a greeting. Night and day were interchangeable to her as her cell was underground, so the only way she could tell was from the guard rotations. _

"_Taichou." _

_A captain? What was a captain doing down here? She guessed there might be a new prisoner coming in. She was the only permanent resident here, though. The rest usually came for a short time before they were transferred elsewhere. _

_The captain came into view and her eyes widened in surprise. _

_His voice was even when he said to her guard, "The Hokage wishes to see you."_

_The ANBU guard glanced in her direction as she stood up and walked towards the bars. "My post?" he queried. _

"_I will be here until the day shift arrives in two hours." _

_Two hours meant that right now it was seven in the morning, Sakura surmised. _

"_Thank you, Taichou."_

_And then the ANBU guard walked away, leaving her alone with the captain. He was dressed in the standard issue ANBU vest but without his mask. There was a familiar looking storage scroll held in his hand, the one he'd taken out months ago when they had formed their second contract. _

"_Itachi? What are you doing here?" she asked while her hands gripped the metal bars separating them._

"_Good evening, Sakura," he greeted politely without answering her question. "I trust you're well?" _

_She blinked dumbly. "I'm fine." For someone who'd lost her freedom and had her chakra bound, stuck in here without anything meaningful to do. "Again, what are doing here?" _

_He simply unrolled the storage scroll and extracted a bento box. She winced involuntarily when she noticed the Uchiha insignia carved on the rectangular lid. Wordlessly, he placed in on the transportation seal carved on the floor outside the cell and with a few quick seals, the bento box appeared on a similar symbol on the knee-high stone ledge in her cell. _

_Eyeing it warily, she asked, "What is this?" _

"_A bento box." _

"_I know it's a bento box," she snapped impatiently. "It's a bento box from the Uchiha clan, so what is it doing here?" _

"_A peace offering from my mother. She made you breakfast." _

_She tensed. "Thanks for the thought. But I don't think I'm allowed non-standard issue prison food. And I think my usual breakfast would arrive soon." _

"_The Hokage has made an exception. It has been inspected by the necessary parties and approved for delivery," he told her mildly. "It's safe." _

_She took two steps towards the stone ledge and lifted the lid of the bento. Its contents made her mouth water and she quickly closed it. _

"_Why?" she asked. _

"_My mother regrets their interference in our personal life, and that it had resulted in…" His eyes swept their surroundings. "… your confinement."_

"_It's not her fault," she muttered. "I chose to leave."_

"_When the news were made public that you're gone, my mother had heard the other clan members speaking unfavorably of you. She had felt regret then, but your assumed death meant that there was nothing she could do. Now, she simply wishes to make your day more pleasant to atone for her negligence."_

_Sakura frowned. Uchiha Makoto had left her alone for most of their marriage, now that she thought about it. Perhaps it was the older woman's way of giving them their privacy. Honestly, she didn't know what she should make of it now that her fury over the whole situation had dimmed down over the years. She supposed if Makoto felt like she should make amends, then it wouldn't be good to reject such a gesture. _

"_She's also concerned about your weight loss."_

_She raised a brow. "Eh?"_

"_Sasuke mentioned it to her."_

"_Oh." _

"_You should eat while it's warm," Itachi said as he turned away from her to stand in the usual guard's post. _

_Unsure what to say, she simply turned to the box and sat down in front of the ledge. She opened the box and the scent hit her. It was much more luxurious than the usual prison fare of rice and miso soup. This box contained fish, chicken, pickles, rice and soup, a veritable feast for someone who had been eating very basic food for the past one month. So without further ado, she began to eat. Every few mouthfuls, she darted a glance at Itachi but he did not move an inch from his post. _

_When she finally finished, she sighed and said, "Please convey my thanks to your mother. It was delicious." Now hopefully her stomach could digest it. _

_Itachi turned towards her. "I will do so." _

_Carefully, she placed the empty bento box back on the transportation seals. Itachi brought his hands together and with a subtle burst of smoke, the bento box appeared outside. Itachi put it in his storage scroll and then extracted something else. To her surprise, it was a shogi board. She watched incredulously as he began to lay out the pieces on the board just outside the bars. He couldn't be doing what she thought it looked like. _

_When all the pieces were in place, he looked at her. "It's a good way to pass time."_

_Slowly, she lowered herself to a seating position on the other side of the bars. "Alright. But I'm not very good at this and I'm not sure how we're going to play with me on this side."_

"_I will move your pieces for you, and you'll improve as you practice." _

_And so she did, until the morning guard arrived. The masked ANBU had been always polite and formal to her, but this was the first time she sensed confusion and uncertainty in his demeanor as he approached them. _

_Stopping behind Itachi, who was moving one of the pieces on the board, the ANBU said hesitantly, "Taichou. Is this allowed?"_

_Itachi carefully set the board aside and stood up to face the ANBU. "None of the rules state otherwise." _

_After a short pause, the ANBU guard nodded. "I suppose you're right." _

_She found Itachi's eyes on her then. His voice was smooth when he said, "I will return tonight and we can continue this."_

_Return? "Wait! What do you mean, return?" _

_His eyes gleaming with something akin to humor, he explained, "I will be taking the night shift guard duty from now on."_

_The ANBU guard sucked in a sharp breath while she sputtered, "You? My guard?"_

"_I'm afraid you're not in the position to object, Sakura," he told her._

_And with that, he strode down the corridor out of the west wing of the prison cells. _

It had all began then. Itachi's casual behavior around her was like a catalyst. Before his appearance, she had only one visitor a week as per the regulations but after that, others had caught on. As Deidara had mentioned earlier, she had no lack of visitors over the past two years. Kakashi, Naruto, and even Sasuke visited her every few nights if they were in Konoha. Some of the others also did, even if it was less frequent than her teammates. She was surprised that Itachi actually allowed it.

Well, perhaps _allowed_ was a little untrue when it came to Deidara's visits. The Iwa nin always came in the form of one of his clay constructs, and even if Itachi was to capture it as he'd once done, the clay construct simply self-destructed thus erasing all evidence. Catching the clay construct was pointless because Deidara was safely in Iwa. And besides, his visits were harmless and carefully monitored by a very observant Uchiha Itachi.

"Oi, stop spacing out, yeah. I have to go soon."

Snapped out of her musings by Deidara's words, she turned to the mouse. "You have a mission today?"

Sounding disgusted, he said, "We're expecting a diplomatic envoy from Mist, yeah. So I was told to me there."

"You'd better be on your best behavior then," she told him cheekily, knowing how much he hated such things.

"What I'd like to do is to show them a blast they would never forget in a million years, yeah!"

"You're bound by your words to the Tsuchikage, though," she pointed out.

"Just wait until I take over from him," he grumbled. "Then I can do what I like."

Itachi interjected drily. "Again, your premature confidence is astounding. The Tsuchikage hasn't formally named you as his successor."

The clay mouse glared at Itachi. "Can you shut up and stay out of our conversation? I wasn't talking to you, yeah." Turning back to her, Deidara asked, "Can't you get a change of guards or something? I hate seeing his face every time I come here."

"Then you should limit your visit between 0900 hours and 2100 hours," Itachi pointed out. "The morning guard might allow you a minute of conversation before he destroys your clay figurine."

"Itachi, please," she implored. "Can we just not fight over every other word?"

Itachi slanted a look of pure contempt at the mouse before he turned to face away from them. It struck her that she had never seen such a side to the stoic ANBU until Deidara appeared in her life. Since then, Itachi had seemed more and more human.

Sighing, she scolded Deidara, "And you! You know that there isn't any point in antagonizing him. Anyway, let's talk about that topic that you've been avoiding."

"What topic?" he said sullenly.

"What the Tsuchikage raised a few weeks back."

The mouse bristled. "I'm not entering some stupid arranged marriage, yeah. That's going one step too far. The only person I'm willing to marry is you."

She exhaled in exasperation. He only mentioned this because it almost became a routine over the years. And over that span of time, his words had lost the desperation they had once carried. Deidara was not serious about marrying her, not at all. But he refused to admit it.

"We have been through this a long time ago, Deidara."

His chin tilted stubbornly. "When you get out in two years, you can come to Iwa."

Out of the periphery of her vision, she saw Itachi tense. Carefully, she replied, "When I get out in two years, I won't be allowed to step out of the village for a few more years. And my chakra would remain sealed until the end of those years. That's a long time more, Deidara. By that time, you would be the Tsuchikage already."

"Great. And then I can do whatever I want. The first thing I would do is kidnap you."

"Tsk! You can't, and you know that. We are not like that anymore. Besides, something like that would be a serious incident between villages."

The clay mouse's body twitched in irritation. "Like that would stop me from trying, yeah."

"You promised that you would put Iwa's interest first," she said sternly. "Like any good leader would."

"It's doubtful that he could be such a leader," Itachi murmured.

Scowling, she snapped, "Your comments are not helping. And Deidara could do it if he sets his mind on it."

A smug mouse piped up, "Of course."

Huffing, she carried on, "Anyway, aside from the fact that I'm stuck and would continue to be stuck in Konoha for a long time, you know things between us won't work out that way."

The smug look disappeared to be replaced with annoyance. "You're not even willing to try!"

"I told you! Because I know I don't feel strongly enough to abandon Konoha to join another village! What does that say, hm?" she finally snapped. "It wouldn't be fair to you."

Deidara looked away. "So in the end, you choose the bastard."

In a long-suffering tone, she sighed, "This isn't about Itachi. Let's not rehash this for the hundredth time, shall we?"

"I won't give up."

And Sakura raised her brow. "I bet Kurotsuchi would change your mind eventually."

If a white clay mouse could blush, it would have done so right now. Before dawn a few months ago, Deidara had appeared in a miniature clay form all flustered and had rambled on about the Iwa kunoichi. She suspected that he had been drunk then, especially when she finally managed to piece together the entire story. Apparently there was an annual masquerade festival in Iwa where drinks flowed freely in celebration of the Tsuchikage's ascension to the leadership position. Deidara had been put in charge of organizing part of the entertainment and he had, predictably, put explosives on display. High with glee and the drinks, he had join in the merriment and somehow ended up in the bed of some masked kunoichi only to find out in the morning that it was the Tsuchikage's granddaughter, Kurotsuchi. The fallout hadn't been pretty and their relationship had been strained since then.

"I told you that was a one-off thing, yeah," he muttered.

She decided to tell Deidara what she thought. "I don't think that's the case with her, though. In fact, she might have mentioned something to Onoki and that's why he brought up the marriage topic."

The mouse winced. "I'm not marrying her. We've known each other way too long."

"That reasoning makes no sense, Deidara."

Itachi's quiet voice interjected, "She could be with child."

The little clay body trembled agitatedly. "Could you just shut up, hm? I really don't need to hear something like that."

"He has a point," she said. "Did you at least talk to her about it?"

"What the hell for?" Deidara snapped defensively. "If she has a problem, she would tell me, right?"

Sakura raised a brow at him. "Right," she muttered flatly.

"Anyway. I'm heading off. I'll see you some time, yeah," he said in a gruff tone.

She smiled as he scurried up her arm and rubbed his clay form against her neck affectionately. Picking the mouse up in her palm, she raised him in front of her and said, "Take care, alright."

The mouse nodded, and then leapt off. For a brief moment, it was suspended mid-air and then exploded with a small pop.

000

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Itachi exhaled in relief the moment he heard the tell-tale sound. The explosion was not a large one, but then again, the clay construct was minute and carried very little chakra. Regrettably, it still served as a very effective communication device.

Although Itachi wished that it was less effective, he was certain that Sakura disagreed. She clearly derived a lot of joy from Deidara's visits, much to his dismay. As he was just a few feet away, he could not help but hear everything they said. Their conversation ranged from the topic of what they ate each day to Deidara's growing list of responsibilities in Iwa's administration. Personal topics were not broached upon so frequently, as those topics tended to rile all three of them, like today.

Deidara's regular appearance in Sakura's life meant that Itachi's own mission to sway Sakura to his side was a tougher battle than it would have been if the Iwa nin was absent. At least that was what he'd thought initially. However, much that he disliked to admit it Itachi knew that by observing their interaction he was learning more about how to interact with Sakura. So far, he had put this knowledge to good use and he sensed that Sakura was now as comfortable with him as she was with the Iwa nin.

"You can relax now," Sakura said drily.

Lips quirking, he turned around to sit facing her. If he reached for her, he could probably touch her, but he would refrain from doing so. Through the bars, he watched as she pulled her shoulder-length pink hair into a messy ponytail. It was gratifying to see her natural color on her again.

"Am I in particular need of relaxation?" he asked mildly.

"Don't pretend. You're as tense as a board whenever he appears." She sighed. "He's harmless, you know."

"I wouldn't call the potential successor to the Tsuchikage harmless," he returned drily. "And you know that."

She shrugged. "I guess." Then with a frown, she continued, "I just hope that he settles things with Kurotsuchi before everything blows up in his face. He's just being stubborn now."

"He is foolishly clinging to the illusion that he's in love with you."

She gave him an offended look. "Is the idea of someone being in love with me so unbelievable?"

Ah, another slip, he thought. Calmly, he responded, "No. At times, I think I could be afflicted by such a condition myself. And I doubt it could be cured."

She blinked slowly. "If that's a declaration of love, it could be better executed," she told him flatly.

He smiled. "You said you're not ready to hear such a declaration from me, therefore I'm restraining myself from properly confessing."

"When you phrase it like that, I'm not sure if you're serious or just flirting."

He said nothing.

Sighing, she continued, "Not that I don't enjoy your presence…"

Itachi felt an inner glow of satisfaction at her words.

"And I know that we've spoken about this many times. But don't you think you're over-qualified to be a prison guard?" she added. "I mean, you're an ANBU captain carrying out the duty of a rookie ANBU. What's the challenge in this? Don't you feel bored?"

"Does my company bore you?"

"Of course not."

"Then there's no reason why I should be bored, is there?" He gave her a reassuring look. "Besides, it is a welcomed change from my usual duties. The regularity of each day is soothing."

"You're crazy," she muttered.

Lips twitching, he said, "Perhaps. You must understand that ever since I was a child, there had been a lot of expectations placed upon me. The missions I was allocated are highly ranked and none of them had been particularly easy. Years of such missions have taken their toll, I suppose. Therefore I truly appreciate these two peaceful years here. You're… "

His senses picked up an approaching presence and her words cut off when he raised a finger to his lips.

At her questioning look, he told her, "The Hokage."

Her eyes widened and she stood up quickly. Unhurriedly, he assumed the position one would expect of a guard just as the metal door at the end of the corridor banged open. The Hokage's entrance usually had the subtlety of a barging bull.

"Uchiha! How's the prisoner?" she called out as she strode rapidly towards them with a stack of papers in her arms.

"Haruno Sakura's condition is unchanged. As always," he reported dutifully.

Tsunade snorted out loud as she halted in front of him and gave him a knowing look. "It's good to know that one of my best ANBU is spending his time taking such good care of our prisoner, instead of being on missions that actually bring in some good money to the village," she added drily.

Itachi gave her a polite nod. When he had made his intentions known to her more than two years ago, her infamous temper had exploded. But when he had explained his true reasons to her, she had assented albeit a little reluctantly. What he had faced from her was nothing compared to the outrage of the Uchiha clan when the news of his posting at the prison cell reached them. As he had effectively demoted himself, Fugaku was furious but Itachi had made it clear that nothing would make him reverse the decision. Until now, his relationship with his father remained strained. He had even heard rumors that Fugaku now favored Sasuke as his successor.

He wished Sasuke the best of luck.

"Move aside and let me see the wayward kunoichi," Tsunade said as she closed in on the cell bars.

"Tsunade-sama," Sakura greeted with a bow.

"Tsk… You look thinner than last week. Prison food doesn't agree with you?"

"You say that every week."

Tsunade huffed, and then pushed a stack of papers through the cell doors for Sakura. Once again, Itachi held his tongue even though a muscle in his jaw ticked. The Hokage's habit of foisting her work on others was nothing new but technically, Sakura _was_ a prisoner. Making her do tedious but official paperwork was unacceptable. And this wasn't even the first time. Itachi had lost count of how many times this had happened over the past two years.

"What is this?" Sakura asked.

"Just some minor complaints from the civilians from the consultation session we held yesterday. I need you to draft suitable replies to placate them," Tsunade said as she tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Shouldn't take you more than a couple of days, right?"

Unbelievably, Sakura brightened as she scanned the paper at the top of the stack. "I'll do my best, Tsunade-sama!"

"You do that," the Hokage said, and then turned to him. "Uchiha. Get them back to me when she's finished, will you?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

She narrowed her honey-colored eyes at him. "Is that disapproval I sense, Uchiha?"

Keeping his tone even, he replied, "It is not my place to disapprove, Hokage-sama."

"Hmph! Glad you know that," she said carelessly before returning her attention to Sakura. "Have you reviewed the case file I brought to you last week?"

Sakura nodded, and they launched into an intense medical discussion as Itachi once again observed resignedly. The pink-haired kunoichi's expression was animated as she voiced her views to her mentor and it was clear that the older woman valued Sakura's comments. He was truly grateful to see that her defection from Konoha hadn't caused an irreparable rift between them. And now that Sakura was back, their bonds would only grow stronger.

An hour passed before the medical discussion ended with Tsunade accepting some notes Sakura had made on the case.

As the Hokage tucked the file under her arm, she said, "At least you're not wasting away all your time in this cell." She darted a meaningful look at him. "Unlike some others."

Sakura grinned. "You're the Hokage, Tsunade-sama. I'm sure you can make your subordinates do whatever you tell them to."

Tsunade snorted derisively. "He would no doubt find some irrefutable excuse to be in here. Isn't that right, Uchiha?"

"Aa," he returned evenly.

"Maybe by now both of you have managed to patch things up." The Godaime smirked. "Perhaps you even regret dissolving the marriage."

"Shishou!" Sakura gasped, aghast while he suppressed a wince. "You _didn't_ just say that!"

Tsunade waved her hand dismissively. "I'll leave the two of you to it, then. See you another day."

And then she walked away. The sound of her heels clicked against the hard ground, growing less and less distinct until she slammed out of the door at the end of the corridor. Itachi kept his eyes on the closed door, wondering what Sakura made of the Hokage's comments. This was the first time Tsunade had aired this topic openly in front of both of them, after all.

"So…"

He turned slowly at the sound of her voice. She was facing away from him with her back against the bars so he couldn't see her features.

"Yes?" he prompted when the pause dragged on.

"Do you regret it?" she finally asked.

Knowing exactly what she was referring to, he deliberated for a moment before responding, "No. Not at all."

She sucked in a sharp breath. "I see."

"Look at me, Sakura," he urged calmly.

He watched as she pushed herself off the bars and slowly turned. It was only when their eyes met that he clarified, "I don't regret it because it was necessary."

She regarded him thoughtfully. "You think we needed to close that chapter of our lives before we could move on?"

"Aa. We married for the wrong reasons. It didn't seem right to continue in that manner." He took two steps until he was just on the other side of the bars separating them. "That doesn't mean that I don't wish to be with you in the future."

Her cheeks reddened visibly. "And what makes you think that I'm willing to risk that again?"

"Again? We were not truly together in the first place." He reached through the bars to capture her fingers. The digits were smooth to the touch and he suppressed the urge to caress them. It would not do to alarm her prematurely. His tone was determined when he said, "This time, it will be different."

She blinked at their intertwined fingers, her expression betraying her uncertainty. "Yeah. It's different because now we're safely separated by metal bars," she remarked wryly.

He smirked. "Fortunately the bars also mean that you're unable to escape my attentions."

A chuckle escaped from her lips. "I can't believe I'm actually hearing this from you." And then she frowned. "Come to think of it, you've been plotting this, haven't you?"

He raised a questioning brow.

Shaking her head, she went on, "From the first day you turned up here, you've been systematically inching your way closer to me."

That was true. Also, his progress would be unquestionably much slower if Deidara hadn't appeared. If he had the opportunity he would gladly inform Deidara that the clay figurine visits had provided a good insight on how to interact successfully with Sakura. The Iwa nin would undoubtedly seethe at that revelation.

In an even tone, he replied, "Perhaps certain issues require a gradual approach."

She gave him an exasperated look and pulled her hand away, much to his dismay. Annoyance tinged her words when she declared, "I'm not part of some mission, you know. And if you think this type of courting would get you anywhere, you're sadly mistaken."

Ah, he'd just committed another blunder. Inwardly berating himself, and yet knowing that he had to allow her to see his true self, he explained, "That is how I usually approach matters. When something is important to me, I would seek the best way to succeed. A certain amount of planning and strategizing is usually necessary."

A vein in her forehead throbbed, something he recognized by now as a sign of her displeasure.

"That sounds even worse." She scowled. "Why are you pursuing me, anyway?"

He ran his eyes over her slowly. "Because your presence pleases me. I hope to be in your company as much as I could."

Her scowl wavered as she blinked. And then another blush appeared on her cheeks as she muttered, "Well, that's certainly what you got right now. Don't complain when you get sick of guarding me."

Giving her an unwavering look, he confirmed, "That would never happen."

"Hmph."

When she turned away, he caught a glimpse of a smile curling the corner of her lips. He eyed her longingly, wishing that he could gather her in his arms and pull her close. The bars separating them made it impossible.

But they were almost there. Two years had gone by, and there were only two more years to go before he could reach out and hold her close.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Time moved on and months passed but to Sakura, it was as if nothing much has changed.

As always just like clockwork, the daily polite clang of metal against metal woke Sakura up. Opening her eyes, she sat up to find her daytime ANBU guard placing dinner on the seals outside the bars. It must be six in the evening already. Yawning, she glanced out to find the guard returning to his post to read some kind of book. This new guard had replaced the one before just a few weeks ago. He would check up on her occasionally as was required by the standard procedures but unlike Itachi, he didn't engage her in conversation. It was just as well, since she usually stayed awake all night chatting and caught up on her sleep during the day.

She shifted off her futon and rolled it up before making her way to the rear of her cell. There was a shoulder-height stone partition which divided this wash area from the rest of the cell, giving her a modicum of privacy from her guards. Shivering a little from the icy cold water, she quickly washed herself and prepared for the day, or rather night, ahead.

When she returned to the front of her cell, she went to the stone ledge that served as a table and made a mark in the small notebook there. It was where she recorded the passing of days and so far, it looked as if she had just a couple more months to go. As she didn't begin recording until after Itachi had begun guarding her, she couldn't be sure of the exact time and for some reason, she didn't want to ask anyone. With too much time on her hands, the months passed by so slowly but she found herself not minding too much. It was probably because she still got to see all her important people very frequently. All but Deidara, she corrected. She only got to see him in clay form these days, but that couldn't be helped, she supposed.

She smoothed the page out as she absorbed the fact that she would be released in a few weeks. It was hard to imagine what it would be like and she found herself feeling rather nervous. Tsunade was doing things by the book, at least outwardly. So she should expect her chakra to remain sealed for a few more years which meant that once she was out, she would be doing menial work for her beloved shishou. She shook her head slowly, smiling at the thought of Tsunade dumping _all _the paperwork on her.

Reaching out for a book, she flicked through it idly as images of the village flashed through her mind. It would be nice to go to Ichiraku and ear ramen with Naruto, Sasuke and Kakashi. It would be like old times again. And perhaps she could slowly rebuild the other relationships she had neglected in the past. She faltered slightly at the thought of mending things with Ino. The girl had visited a couple of times but the visits had been strangely quiet. She guessed it would take some time before the rift was mended.

Footsteps sounded, growing louder with each step. If it was Itachi, he was a little early, she thought absently as she flipped over another page of the book. Itachi had lent her this book a while back and she still couldn't understand what he'd found so interesting about it. It was a historical account of some battle which happened many decades ago and it felt too much like a textbook for her to enjoy it.

"Some things just never changes, yeah."

The familiar voice made her start and she swung towards the bars.

"Deidara!" she gasped and jumped to her feet. Behind him was a spiky blond who was wearing a broad smile, but her eyes were too busy studying Deidara. He looked very much the same as before, perhaps just a little more mature.

A grin graced his heartbreakingly familiar face. "It has been a while, yeah."

"But… how?" she asked, confused and excited at the same time.

That very moment, a muted squeal of protest sounded and Sakura's eyes widened. Her gaze now went to the straps across Deidara's chest.

"You didn't!" she whispered incredulously. "Turn around!"

Still grinning, he turned around to display his precious burden. Sakura felt her heart melt as she took in a pink-cheeked face topped with light blonde locks. Chubby arms and legs hung off the body wrapped in the support bands. A pair of brilliant blue eyes stared curiously at her.

"You brought her!" she exclaimed as she gripped the bars tighter. It was a shame she couldn't reach out. "I can't believe this!"

"You said you wished you could see her," he said, reaching back to hold the baby as he untied the bands. "I told you I'll find a way."

"You mean you had help," Naruto piped up for the first time. "Kurotsuchi was ready to stab you with a kunai when you told her what you planned on doing."

Deidara winced. "Well, isn't it just great that you're such good friends with her then?" he snapped, sounding almost jealous much to Sakura's amusement. "We were all saved from Kurotsuchi's stupid mood swings just because some chatty Konoha nin was there, hm?"

"Hey, all this networking is important for a future Hokage," Naruto returned easily.

"I feel sorry for Konoha, having you as a future Hokage," Deidara shot back.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Much better than having an ex-nukenin as the Tsuchikage, don't you think?"

She rolled her eyes. "I hope the two of you only bicker when you're alone, and not in front of delegates from other countries."

Deidara snorted while Naruto let out a choked sound. But both of them refused to meet her eyes which probably meant that the bickering went unchecked no matter who was watching them. She sighed inwardly.

"How are you doing anyway, Naruto? I haven't seen you for the last couple of weeks."

He waved dismissively. "Nothing much happened. Anyway, we can catch up later, together with Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke."

Later? They would visit her later, she guessed.

"Right now, I'd better get back to Baa-chan." Turning to the ANBU guard, Naruto said, "Keep an eye on him. Don't let him run off with Sakura-chan, alright? I'll be back in a while."

The guard nodded seriously but there was awe in his expression when he replied, "Yes, Naruto-sama."

A pained look twisted the blond jinchuuriki's expression. "Tsk! Don't call me that. It's just Naruto. Na-ru-to."

"Yes, Naruto-sama."

With a defeated groan, Naruto waved over his shoulders and walked away from them.

"So… You want to see her?" Deidara asked.

Her gaze stayed on the baby as he shifted the little body forward in his arms. The sight of Deidara holding his daughter like this was never one she thought to see, but she was glad that she was able to. The way he handled her seemed so natural.

Raising her gaze to him, she asked worriedly, "Is Kurotsuchi really okay with you bringing her here?"

He nodded. "She got over her jealousy, yeah."

Sakura winced. "Thank goodness. There's nothing going on between us for a long time already."

"She still has fits about it when we fight, yeah. So it's not all that great. I don't know what else she wants from me. I gave in and married her, didn't I?" He huffed loudly. "And why am I even telling you all this? This is beyond strange, yeah."

"You're just full of complaints." Shifting her attention to the wide-eyed baby, she grinned. "How could you be so full of complaints when you have someone so adorable to love?"

Deidara rolled his eyes. "Bakudan-chan might be cute, but her mother is not, yeah. That woman is a menace."

"But she keeps you in line, admit it." And then she scowled. "I still can't believe that you named your daughter Bomb. Or that Kurotsuchi allowed it."

Grinning with satisfaction, he explained, "I filled in the official register before Kurotsuchi woke up."

Sakura shook her head in exasperation. "I feel sorry for the poor woman, being saddled with you as a husband."

"Hey, she caught the Tsuchikage's successor, yeah. So what more does she want?"

Sakura hid her smile. For all his bluster, she knew that Deidara was truly fond of Kurotsuchi. If not, nothing would have made him marry the kunoichi. And during their conversations, less frequent now over the past couple of years, she often detected a note of possessiveness in his tone when he had spoken about her.

"You had better treat her well, Deidara."

"Or what?"

Sakura raised a brow. "Right… Try to imagine her leaving you for some other guy."

Deidara's expression instantly darkened.

"See?" she teased.

He scowled at her. "That's not funny, yeah."

"I never said it was." In a gentler tone, she said, "I'm glad things are going so well for you back in Iwa. I'm also really happy that I get to see you and Bakudan-chan today."

He gave her a crooked smile which warmed her to her toes. She still could hardly believe that he was standing right there. Talking to him via his clay constructs was great but seeing him in real life was much better. He was clearly keeping well, as evidenced by the happy glow which seemed to surround him. There was also a certain air of calmness which hadn't been there before.

The last time they'd set eyes on each other, they had argued bitterly about her decision. Seeing him like this now convinced her that the decision was the right one for both of them. Perhaps this was fate. Perhaps this day was meant to happen all along.

"What's with that face, yeah?" he asked curiously.

"Just thinking about fate."

He gave her an incredulous look. "What fate?"

She shook her head. "Never mind."

Reaching out through the bars, she carefully rubbed a finger down Bakudan's chubby cheeks, eliciting a giggle from the baby and an attempt to swat her finger away. Sakura felt an irresistible wash of affection for the little girl. Now that she'd seen both Deidara and Bakudan, Sakura hoped that she would have the opportunity to see them more often.

"Want one of your own?" Deidara teased.

She smiled softly. Maybe, she admitted inwardly.

And the baby she imagined had dark hair and dark eyes.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

"Oi, Itachi!"

Itachi's eyelids lifted at the familiar voice. Filtered through the curtains, the muted sunlight ambushed his eyes and he blinked rapidly.

It was dusk.

Unhurriedly, he sat up and began to prepare himself. The security jutsu around his home prevented anyone from barging in unannounced, and this would protect his privacy until he was ready to face his visitor. Such a thing was particularly important when one's cousin was Shisui.

"What's taking you so long, Itachi?" said cousin yelled impatiently from outside.

Heading to the kitchen, he glanced at the clock as he made tea. It was half past six, and in less than three hours, he would see her. Sipping his hot tea at the dining table in the kitchen, he wondered thought about how things would change very soon. Sakura would be released, which meant that he wouldn't have any excuse to see her every day. Perhaps by then she would be willing to be in a relationship with him.

"Oi! I know you're awake! Come on out. This is important!"

Itachi finished his tea and proceeded to rinse his cup. The unwashed bowls stacked at the edge of the sink drew his attention and he frowned in disapproval. Sasuke had neglected to clean up after himself again. Surely it wasn't too much to ask. But then again, this was nothing new. Sasuke had always been remiss when it came to such things.

When Itachi finally made it outside, dressed in his standard ANBU uniform, it was to find Shisui glaring irritably at him.

"Good evening, Shisui."

"About damned time! You need to get to the detention center right now," Shisui told him urgently.

Itachi tensed. "Is Sakura alright?"

"Probably. I was told that the envoy from Iwa requested to see her and Tsunade allowed it. They're there now."

Annoyance shot through him. He should have expected this to happen when he found out that Iwa had sent representatives to the regional meeting which was held in Konoha this year. As the Tsuchikage's informal successor, Deidara would be on the list of invitees. He was foolish to think that Deidara wasn't brazen enough to insist on visiting one of Konoha's prisoners.

"What are you waiting for?" Shisui groaned. "Go!"

"Aa."

And with that, he made his way along the familiar route. A few people nodded greetings at him and he returned them politely. Fortunately, no one chose to engage him in conversations. At least not until he was close to the entrance of the detention center. There, two familiar figures appeared around the corner. Itachi stopped and waited until the pair neared him.

"Aniki."

"Good morning, Sasuke-kun." And then he shifted his attention to his younger brother's companion. "Yamanaka-san."

The blonde waved her hands lightly. "Itachi-san. Visiting Sakura? You're a little early today."

"Aa. So I am."

She grinned and her blue eyes twinkled teasingly. "You missed her _that_ much, huh? I still don't get what you see in her."

"Perhaps the same could be said about your affection for my brother," Itachi returned smoothly.

Sasuke grunted irritably. "Try not to insult me without a reason, would you?"

"It wasn't an insult."

"Right." Sasuke glanced at the entrance to the detention center. "So, it's almost _that_ time, huh?"

Knowing exactly what Sasuke was referring to, Itachi nodded. "Aa."

"Good."

Itachi smiled slightly. And then, "Sasuke, you have left your dishes unwashed. Please tend to them in a timely manner."

His younger brother scowled irritably. "Fine. I'll do it later." Lifting a hand, he said, "See you later."

"Aa."

"Nice to see you, Itachi-san."

Itachi inclined his head at the kunoichi. She waved cheerfully before linking her arm with Sasuke and walking away. The change in the young woman never failed to amaze Itachi. These days, one could hardly detect the cold and calculating shinobi of four years ago. And he knew that it had something to do with Sasuke. After all, during Sasuke's six months of confinement Ino was there almost every day, supposedly on the Hokage's orders to observe if Sasuke suffered from any ill effects of the miko's technique. They had only grown closer since then.

Well, Sasuke seemed to enjoy her company, so it was good all around.

Returning to his objective, Itachi went up the entrance to the detention center and proceeded to go through the security procedures. Once that was completed, he made his way to the holding cells.

When he entered the corridor leading to Sakura cell, his eyes immediately landed on the very human form of the Iwa nin he least wanted to see. A wave of irrational ire rose sharply within him as his steps stilled. Deidara glanced at him and smirked smugly, as if he'd read his thoughts. It was difficult to dismiss the feeling that Deidara was intentionally seeking the best way to annoy him.

"Itachi!" Sakura exclaimed excitedly when she saw him. "Look at Deidara's daughter!"

With a nod, Itachi made his way towards them. The ANBU guard was standing a discreet distance away but he kept his eyes on the visitor, as he should. As Itachi closed the distance, the baby girl's features came into view. Itachi had heard so much about her whenever Sakura and Deidara conversed that he felt as if he almost knew her, even though this was the first time he set eyes upon her. The baby girl stared at him with wide blue eyes filled with curiosity.

"Isn't she cute?" Sakura gushed.

Itachi only nodded. If he recalled correctly, the girl was about one and a half years old. She seemed to be alert and intelligent, he observed.

"She won't bite," Deidara taunted.

Itachi reached out to touch her fingers.

To his horror, she opened her mouth and shrieked loudly as her face turned red in an instant.

"Itachi! What did you do?!" Sakura exclaimed anxiously.

Deidara immediately bounced the girl in his arms, distracting her. "Hey, don't cry, yeah. It's fine. I don't like him that much, either."

Itachi glared coldly at him. Thankfully, after a while the shrieking petered out and the girl stuck her thumb in her mouth, only to have Deidara pull her hand away.

"What's that for, hm? You're too old to suck your thumb," he scolded.

"Umm!" the girl objected.

Sakura chuckled. "I never thought I would see you in action as a father. I'm impressed."

Deidara rolled his eyes. "Believe me when I say I had a lot of practice. Kurotsuchi keeps on dumping Bakudan on me whenever she's on a mission. She should just quit and stay home to look after the kid. Because she refuses to stop, only one of us could be away from Iwa at any one time."

Reaching out to let the girl play with her fingers, Sakura commented, "As long as it works out, I don't see why not. I might not be very experienced when it comes to children, but you seem to be really good with her. Besides, isn't it good for Kurotsuchi to keep on working?"

Itachi glanced sharply at Sakura, suddenly recalling how she was made to give up active duty after their marriage. So many years had passed but he couldn't help feeling regret for the part he'd played in the events. As if sensing his thoughts, she gave him a reassuring smile and a slight shake of her head.

Deidara asked with a raised brow, "Eh? What was that about?"

"It's nothing for you to be concerned about," Itachi told him curtly.

A knowing look appeared on the other nin's face. "Ah, I get it. Sakura had to stop being an active shinobi when she married you. Regretting the way you treated her, hm?" And to Sakura, he added, "See? You should've agreed to come with me when you had the chance. See how well I treat my wife? That evil woman gets her way all the time. But hey, maybe I can persuade Kurotsuchi to accept you as my concubine. What do you think, hm?"

Even more annoyed now, Itachi stepped forward to stand between them. Giving Deidara an uncompromising look, he said, "Please remember that you have a wife, and therefore it's best that you do not make such comments to Sakura."

Sakura groaned. "He's just joking, Itachi." And then giving Deidara a dry look, she added, "And Kurotsuchi would _castrate_ you if you even think of getting a concubine."

Deidara winced. "Yeah…"

And as Itachi watched, they continued to converse as if he wasn't there. Glowering inwardly, he reminded himself to maintain his patience. He shouldn't be concerned about their relationship. After all, Deidara was no longer free to pursue Sakura.

000

* * *

><p>000<p>

Damn, he was glad to see her face to face after such an extended separation.

It still struck him as incredible that very time they spoke, it was as if nothing had changed. He could still talk to her like he had done years ago and he was glad that the distance hadn't damaged their camaraderie. There was no one else that he could be so open with, except for Kurotsuchi maybe. But that was different. Kurotsuchi was his wife so he was _supposed_ to be at ease around her.

It was not to say that he felt the same for both women. In fact, their relationship couldn't be more different. It took the marriage to Kurotsuchi to open his eyes to this fact. Things with Sakura had always been good and they get along together very well. Things with Kurotsuchi was not always good and most of the time, they seem to set each other off in many ways.

And a lot of those ways were _good_ ways.

The back of his neck heated at the memories. Hopefully she was home when he returned to Iwa. He was sure that he could come up with something to set her off. It wouldn't take much. And then he would sit back and watch the explosion.

"Oi!"

Deidara jumped and he refocused on the pink-haired kunoichi. He had to admit that the color actually suited her, despite his initial doubts. At this moment, her green eyes were giving him a shrewd look.

"What?" he returned defensively, wondering if she had somehow guessed the direction of his thoughts.

A slow grin appeared on her face. "Oh ho…" she exclaimed softly. "I didn't think I'd get to see that look on your face."

He glared at her.

Still grinning, she wagged a finger at him knowingly.

"Tsk! Fine, then!" he snapped. "I was about to give you a present. But maybe I've changed my mind, hm?"

"Eh?" She blinked curiously at him. "What present?"

Out of the corner of his eyes, Deidara saw the Uchiha tense and a morbid sense of pleasure rolled over him. Even though he knew that he and Sakura wouldn't ever be together, it still felt good that he could rile the stoic ANBU.

"Hey, Deidara! What is it?" she pressed.

"I see that your patience hasn't improved a bit," he remarked and then reached into his pocket.

A second later, he dangled a key in front of her.

"A key?" she queried with confusion.

He waggled his brows. "Guess for what?"

Her eyes widened in realization.

"For the cell door, I presume," Itachi supplied flatly. "Where did you get it?"

Annoyed, Deidara spun towards him. "Was I talking to you?"

Sakura stared at him in disbelief. And then she paled. Nearby, the ANBU guard was drawing his katana from the sheath but the Uchiha held a hand up to still him.

"Tell me you didn't steal it from Tsunade-sama!" she cried out as she gripped the bars. "Deidara!"

He rolled his eyes at her. "What do you think? Of course I didn't. She gave it to me. This is not my idea."

Speaking of ideas, the crafty Hokage had an odd gleam in her eyes when she had suggested that he could release Sakura while he was there. He couldn't figure out why she would even say such a thing, and so he openly demanded to know the reason. As he'd expected, there was a stipulation attached to it. Ultimately, he had agreed and she'd passed it to him together with the instructions of how to unseal the cell. She had also informed him that this instruction would only work on Sakura's cell. Figures…

As Sakura watched in shock, he performed the necessary jutsu and inserted the key. A pulse of chakra radiated briefly and the door clanged open.

Grinning, Deidara stepped back and bowed slightly.

"Your freedom, Sakura. A month earlier than scheduled."

When she continued to stand rooted to the spot, he exhaled impatiently. "You need to be outside the cell if you want to show me all those places you've been taking about, yeah. So move it!"

A choked sound escaped her, and her hand went to cover her lips.

Itachi eyed her with concern. "Sakura…"

She shook her head and in a trembling tone, she said, "I'm fine. Just surprised."

And then she took the few steps that brought her out of the cell she'd been confined in for so long. Reaching out shakily, she grabbed one of his hands and one of the Uchiha's and squeezed them.

"Thank you," she whispered tremulously.

All Deidara could think of at that moment was that the expression on her face was worth the one unspecified favor he now owed the Hokage.

000

* * *

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It was strange how everything looked the same and yet different. She had been spent nearly two years away from Konoha and two more years incarcerated in a detention cell. In that time, new buildings had emerged and a few of the streets were almost unrecognizable.

Whilst in the past she recognized most of the faces in Konoha, she now noted that there were those that were new to her. Some of those she recognized had approached her to greet her, albeit a little warily, as if they did not know what to make of her. She couldn't really blame them, though. She had been a well-known figure before her defection, first as the Hokage's apprentice and then as Uchiha Itachi's wife. They had thought that she was dead, only to have her return two years later as a missing nin. And then after two years of confinement, she was released. Itachi had told her that the circumstances of her situation hadn't been made public. The Hokage had declared the issue confidential and would tolerate no questions. Sakura was truly grateful for her shishou's consideration.

Having being dismissed from the Hokage's office and now dressed in borrowed civilian clothes, Sakura found herself seated between Deidara and Naruto in Ichiraku Ramen. Kakashi and Sasuke were at Deidara's end while Itachi was beside Naruto, quietly sipping tea while the rest of them conversed.

"How does it feel to be out?" Kakashi asked her.

"Great!" she replied happily, and then narrowed her eyes at him. "You don't have anything to do with it, do you?"

He held up both hands and shook his head.

She looked around. "So, can someone explain to me why I'm out so soon?"

"It's about a month earlier than scheduled, isn't it?" Sasuke commented.

"Really?"

The corner of Kakashi's eyes crinkled. "Are you complaining?"

"Of course not!"

"Two servings of ebi ramen, three tonkatsu ramen, and a miso ramen," Teuchi announced as he placed their orders in front of them. Giving her a wide smile, he said, "Yours is an extra-large serving."

Naruto groaned. "What about me?"

"Thank you, Teuchi-san!" she said happily. And then turning to Naruto, she asked, "So? I'm guessing it has something to do with you."

Naruto slurped a large mouthful of noodles and then grinned. "We know about the time you spent with Deidara, so we thought that it might be nice for you to be out when he visited. It's for the good for village relations. Besides, no one would object."

Eh? Was that it? "Really?" she asked doubtfully.

Deidara snorted. "Yeah, really," he muttered as he shifted Bakudan on his lap and picked up his chopsticks.

She eyed them suspiciously. There was something they were not telling her.

"Um-umm! 'Tou-chan!" Bakudan demanded.

"Wait, it's too hot," Deidara told her.

Setting down his tea and reaching for his noodles, Itachi remarked calmly, "I suspect the Hokage negotiated a favor from Iwa for this."

Sakura gasped and turned to Deidara. "Is that right?"

He shrugged dismissively.

No way! "Deidara!"

"It's done, yeah. Now you can do your part and show me the rest of Konoha after I'm done with all the tedious political stuff." He gave Bakudan some noodles and obviously changing the topic, he commented, "You know, this has to be one of the best ramen I've tasted."

"Yeah! Isn't it great?!" Naruto exclaimed enthusiastically.

Deidara glanced around. "The place is a little small, though. It's full with only six of us here."

"Adds to the atmosphere," Naruto defended.

"Hn."

"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Naruto asked teasingly. "Upset because there isn't space for another one?"

The younger Uchiha glared at him.

Kakashi chuckled. "She could have sat on his lap."

She? "Eh? Who are you talking about?" Sakura asked curiously.

"Ah, we wanted you to hear directly from this Teme," Naruto said as he waggled his brow at Sasuke. "So tell her already."

Sasuke scowled. "You're making a big deal out of nothing."

"Then tell me, Sasuke!" she urged.

When he remained mute, Naruto interjected impatiently, "He's going out with Ino!"

Sasuke shot him a venomous look as Sakura gasped, "Really?"

"What? It's not as if she's not going to find out sooner or later!"

"We are _not_ going out," Sasuke growled.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure."

"When did this happen?"

That was the prompt Naruto needed to launch into the tale. He told her about Sasuke's recovery and Ino's role, as well as the change in Ino. At the reminder of her old friend's hostility towards her in the years before she defected, Sakura felt her heart sink. Ino was probably the only one who had not visited her.

With a sigh, she muttered, "I don't think Ino likes me very much."

"She has her reasons."

Sakura looked up at Sasuke's voice. His eyes were glued to his bowl but he wasn't eating. "What do you mean, Sasuke? Did she tell you?" she asked with a twinge of trepidation.

Appearing discomfited, he put down his chopsticks and then glanced at her. In a quiet voice, he explained, "She thought you only wanted the Uchiha name. First it was me but I supposedly died, and then when Itachi's proposal came long, you accepted without hesitation."

"What?!" she exclaimed in horror.

Eyes wide, Naruto said, "So that was what it was all about? Ino didn't know that the thing with Sasuke wasn't real?"

Unsettled by the recollection of that one drunken night that could have turned into a real disaster, Sakura darted a look at Sasuke before she said, "We didn't have a romantic relationship or anything like that. There was nothing but everyone just assumed that we were together. I guess I should have explained it properly. I just didn't think that it was bothering her so much."

"She likes Sasuke even then. Perhaps she thought that what you were doing was traitorous to his memory," Kakashi supplied.

"I too was under the impression that Sakura was in a relationship with my brother," Itachi admitted.

She gave him a small smile, recalling their heated discussions over the topic. "Well, I guess Sasuke and I fooled everyone a little too well, huh?" she remarked wryly.

Sasuke snorted and then gave Itachi a measured look. "That doesn't explain why you agreed to marry her, Aniki. It's not something you would simply accept. Maybe you would like to explain?"

Itachi fixed her with an unmistakably possessive look when he said, "Perhaps I simply wanted her."

She choked on her soup. Oh, he had some nerve, blurting something like that out. She couldn't think of a rebuttal. Still, she supposed his feelings for her were clear as far as the others were concerned anyway. It was no secret that he had taken himself off missions to be her guard, after all. That was as good as declaring his interest in her.

"Well, at least that's cleared up now," Naruto declared cheerfully as he reached over to pat her back. "Now let me tell you more."

She listened as he went through what everyone else had been doing, with Kakashi adding bits here and there.

An hour later, they finally exited the small ramen stall.

Naruto stretched his arms up high. "Ah! That was just what I needed." And then he glanced at Deidara. "I think we should go or we might upset a few people."

Deidara lowered his daughter to the ground and held her hand as he nodded, and then turned to her. "I'll find you when I'm done."

Naruto gave Deidara's shoulder a friendly punch and declared, "Don't worry. I'll show you all the interesting stuff in Konoha when the meetings are over."

Glowering at the other blonde, Deidara snapped, "And when did I ask you to do something like that, yeah?"

"You want Sakura to show you around by herself?" Naruto asked incredulously.

"Sakura has been away for so long that she probably needs a guide of her own," Sasuke muttered. "I guess Itachi's the first in line to volunteer."

"Of course," Itachi murmured without hesitation.

Kakashi choked back a cough as Sakura laughed at their antics and watched their exchange fondly. It felt good to be here surrounded by all her important people. Itachi included, she thought as she glanced sideways at the silent Uchiha. Catching her eyes, he smiled slightly and it sent a shot of warmth tingling up her spine. This reaction happened on a regular basis now, and it no longer disturbed her as it had once done. Only an idiot couldn't tell what it was. And she supposed her own response could only be interpreted as acceptance.

"Yosh! Let's go," Naruto called out.

"So see you later, yeah," Deidara said and nudged his daughter forward. "Say goodbye to Sakura, Baku-chan."

As Sakura waved, Bakudan simply stared at her and promptly stuck her thumb in her mouth.

"Tsk! Stop doing that! You're not a baby anymore," Deidara scolded as he walked away in Naruto's wake.

After a moment, Kakashi commented, "Makes you look at him a little differently, doesn't it? It's so strange, because he's still labeled as a ruthless maniac in the Bingo Books."

"He probably still is," Sakura muttered. Given a chance, Deidara would probably blow up an entire village without any hint of remorse.

"Well…" Kakashi squinted at the sun. "We're running a little late, but we will catch up."

"Late for what?" she asked.

Sasuke scowled. "We were meant to leave for a mission a couple of hours ago but we heard about your release. Sai went ahead, so he's probably halfway to our first check point by now."

Sakura gasped and stared at him incredulously. "Then what are you still doing here? Kakashi! This is an ANBU mission, and that's not like our genin days! You can't be so slack about it."

Kakashi waved her concerns away. "I know. I know." He smiled. "But we couldn't really miss this, could we?"

"Hn."

Her heart warmed at her old teammates' regard for her. "Thanks for welcoming me back to the village."

Kakashi smiled and patted her on her shoulder. "I'm glad to have you back."

"We'll see you around," Sasuke said, raising a hand and turning to walk towards Konoha's gates.

Her gaze followed their retreating backs until they were no longer visible. And then she turned to the side to find Itachi watching her. His face was broadcasting his feelings without a hint of restraint. At times like this, she wondered if he knew just how transparent his expression was. But it had not always been like this, so she guessed that he was deliberately allowing her to see how he felt. He had changed so much that she could hardly believe that this was the Uchiha Itachi she had once married. If he had been like this back then, things would have been so different.

"So… It's just us, huh?" she broke the silence a little awkwardly.

She should not be feeling like this. This was the man who had spent the most of the past two years by her side in the detention center. But the lack of bars between them felt odd and she did not know how she should act now.

Itachi gave her a small smile. "Is that unacceptable?"

"No…" She looked down and then around her at Konoha. "It seems strange, like I never left. But it has been so long, hasn't it?"

"You will have to remain in Konoha for some time, so you have sufficient time to reacquaint yourself with the village. I will help you."

She swung towards him, startled by the implications of his words. "You'll help me?"

He nodded and stepped closer.

She frowned. "Now that you don't have to guard me, aren't you going back on the active roster?"

"Perhaps. I haven't decided yet." He reached out to touch the side of her neck, sending shivers up her body as he rubbed her sensitive skin. His eyes remained in contact with hers as he continued softly, "I wish to spend some time with you first. The rest could wait."

Her cheeks heated at his expression. "Itachi…"

It was then that some sensation pricked at her. Immediately tensing at the familiar warning, she turned around slowly to find herself facing a solemn Uchiha Fugaku and his wife.

"Chichi-ue," Itachi greeted politely. The hand which had been caressing her neck dropped to the small of her spine. "Okaa-san."

Fugaku inclined his head at him and then turned to Sakura. "So you have been released."

Sakura tamped down on her initial reaction to assume a submissive pose and instead, straightened herself. "Yes Fugaku-san, Mikoto-san. How are you?"

Mikoto smiled gently at her. "We are fine. I'm glad to see that you're released."

Giving the older woman a genuine smile, Sakura said, "Thank you for the lovely bento boxes."

She didn't miss the sharp look Fugaku darted at his wife. Ah, so it was like that, huh? To her credit, Mikoto did not even twitch at her husband's reprimanding look. Instead, she took a few steps to close the distance between them and reached out to hold her hands, much to Sakura's surprise.

Her eyes displaying her sincerity, Mikoto said, "I'm sorry for the trouble we have put you through. Please forgive us."

"Mikoto!" Fugaku snapped harshly. "You've said enough."

"Chichi-ue," Itachi interjected coldly. "Please refrain from such a tone when speaking to Okaa-san."

Fugaku stiffened and directed a steely look at his son. "Do not be impertinent, Itachi. You're still my son."

"Oh?" Itachi raised a brow. "I was under the impression that you've disowned me."

Sakura sucked in a sharp breath.

_What?_

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His father looked as if he was about to implode and Itachi experienced a grim satisfaction at his father's reaction. Their interaction was nothing new, though. Their relationship had been strained ever since he had announced that he would be Sakura's guard during the course of her detention. Or perhaps it was because at the same time, he had rejected the position of the Uchiha heir. He had known for the longest time that he was not suited for such a position. How could he be, when he disagreed with their principles more often than not?

A soft touch grazed his hip and he glanced at Sakura to find her staring at him in shock.

"Itachi? You didn't tell me about this."

He gave her back a reassuring stroke. "Later."

Fugaku huffed. "I don't approve of this, Itachi. You're neglecting your duties for this girl."

"Isn't this the same girl you were so keen for me to marry five years ago?"

"That's before she became a missing nin!"

It never failed to amaze him just how shallow his father could be at times. Keeping his tone even, he retorted, "Since I've been disowned, this shouldn't concern the clan, should it?"

"I wouldn't have said such a thing if you didn't insist on being stubborn," Fugaku bit out.

Itachi told him calmly, "Sasuke is more than capable of handling the clan affairs, Chichi-ue. Besides, he has no objections to the role. I prefer to lead my own life without the interference of the clan. The last time I allowed such interference, the results were not to my liking."

"You have always been like this. Why are you so reluctant to do the right thing by the clan?" Fugaku said heatedly. "You have been raised to be the heir, not Sasuke. It's your duty."

His mother took hold of his father's arm. "Let's not talk about that now, alright?" Turning to Itachi, she continued, "Shall we expect you for dinner tonight? Sasuke is coming with Ino."

"I would be pleased to join you if Sakura could come too," Itachi returned smoothly.

Mikoto beamed. "Of course she's more than welcomed. I was going to invite her as well. You'll come, right, Sakura-chan?"

He felt Sakura tense under his hand. Trying to calm her, he rubbed small circles with his thumb and then heard her sigh.

Sakura's tone was polite when she said, "Thank you for your invitation. But I was just released and I need to sort out a few things today. I suspect I wouldn't finish until late."

Undeterred, Mikoto said, "Ah, perhaps tomorrow night would be better?"

Itachi felt the release of tension in Sakura's back just a moment before she replied, "I would be glad to join you for dinner then."

"Fantastic! Don't be late."

Dropping his hand from Sakura, Itachi inclined his head at them. "We'll see you tomorrow night."

Mikoto tugged her glowering husband's arm. "Let's go now, or the shops would be closed before we get there." To Sakura, she said, "Let me know if you need any help settling in."

"Thank you, Mikoto-san." Sakura turned to Fugaku and said, "Fugaku-san."

His father's posture was stiff when he turned to walk away with his mother. It was only when they had disappeared from his sight that Itachi allowed himself a long exhale.

"Well, are you going to tell me what was all that about?"

He turned to find Sakura staring demandingly with her fists on her hips. Her green eyes were flashing with challenge and he knew that she would not be pleased with his explanation. But it could not be helped. As he explained how he had informed Fugaku of his decision to guard her and to give up his role as the Uchiha heir, her expression confirmed it.

"It's too much for him to take all at once. I guess there was a row between you and your father about it then?"

"Not just one. He speaks of it each time we meet. My father disapproves of my decision but this is no longer his concern. The life I want isn't the one he had mapped out, and I'm not the person who should be leading the clan. He just needs to accept this."

Concerned, she asked, "Won't you regret it one day?"

"My only regret is that I haven't done this sooner. Clan matters do not interest me in the slightest in the past and I doubt this would change in the future."

"I'm sorry."

"Do not apologize. It's not your fault."

"You did it because I was confined, and your relationship with your father is now…"

He interjected, "It would have happened eventually. Your involvement only sped up the process. It has always been difficult, but now both of our grievances are out in the open. Do not worry. He will come to terms with it in time."

"Are you sure?" she asked uncertainly.

He shrugged. At this point, he did not care. It was enough for him that his mother still cared for him despite the rift between him and his father.

"Enough of this topic," he declared. "Let's go home."

"Home?"

He nodded. "Our home."

She stilled and then said haltingly, "Itachi… I'm not sure..."

Before she could continue, he reached out and pulled her to his chest. Feeling her warmth against him, he closed his eyes in satisfaction. This was what he had wanted to do for years, but the bars prevented him from doing so. He would keep her close from now on. No matter what he had to sacrifice, he would do so.

"This time, it will be different, Sakura," he murmured into her hair.

Her breath hitched. "I want to believe you."

"Then believe me."

With that, he shifted to capture her lips in his. A breathy sound escaped her, sending shots of pleasure through him. Wanting more, he deepened the kiss and continued until he felt dangerously close to the edge. Only then did he pull back to look into her eyes.

Her voice was shaky when she said, "Well, that was something, huh?"

"We could have more," he rasped.

"We could?" she asked a little hesitantly.

He brushed a strand of pink hair away from her cheeks. "We are not starting this relationship with falsehoods, but with truths. This time, we both know where we stand with each other."

She raised a brow. Lips twitching now, she asked, "And do you mind clarifying that statement? Just so that there are no misunderstandings."

"I love you," he stated plainly, and watched her eyes widen. "This time, it has nothing to do with anyone else except the two of us. And also, you love me," he gambled.

Her eyes narrowed immediately. "You're _that_ confident that I love you?"

"Don't you?"

She stared at him for a long while. Long enough to make him wonder if he had erred. But even if she did not love him now, he would make sure that she did in the near future. This was non-negotiable.

Her voice was soft when she finally said, "I guess I do."

Itachi's chest flooded with warmth. "Good."

She gave him an odd look. "So, you weren't as confident as you made it sound."

His lips quirked. "Perhaps not."

A chuckled escaped her and her eyes brightened. "Alright, let's go home then."

He presented his hand to her. And to his satisfaction, she placed hers there trustingly. It was a small gesture but it meant a lot to him.

And with that, they walked back home hand in hand.

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_**The End**_

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A/N: And that's it for this story! Hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Please review and thank you for following the story!

:elle6778:


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